Eye on Me
by Al Kristopher
Summary: After scouring through the brunt of FF8 romances, I noticed that one unlikely pairing was missing, so I set out to make a story that would finally hook up one of the most unusual pairs of them all... NIDA and FUJIN! Read on to see how I do it!
1. How We Met

Author's note: The more I think about this very bizarre pairing, the more I like it. In most of the FF8 stories I've read, Fujin is either paired up with Seifer or else a woman (no offense, Chendzeea-Li), and Nida is either with Quistis, Xu (no offense, Lady Aliena) or another guy. But I want to offer something different, something above and beyond the normal love story. These two individuals are becoming more and more popular by the day, so I suppose it only makes sense to put them together in a romance story. There _will_ be mush in the story, and maybe a little out-of-character touch, but I hope it'll be worth it at the end. As always, enjoy.

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Eye On Me

By Al Kristopher

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Chapter One: How We Met

As far back as I can remember, I've always wanted to be a SeeD.

The name's Franks, Nida Franks. I'll tell you more about myself later. Right now, I've got a more interesting tale to tell. It's a romance, so for all you ladies out there, this one's for you. The gentlemen, too--like most really great romance stories, this tale involves the union of a man and a woman, and I, as you might know, am the man.

My tale starts way back when, around the time of my sixteenth birthday. I'd like to say that my family was rich, or famous, or well-known, but since I'm only able to boast about the fact that we're all very honest, I can't. So, I'll just say that I came from a good home. Now, we weren't poor, and we weren't rich, and if there's anybody out there with a wise head on their shoulders, they'll tell you that that's the best position to be in.

Anyway, just consider that a free tidbit about me. I'll fill you in on more later, but for now, my story. Like I was saying, I've always wanted to be a SeeD. I guess you could say that it was my romantic dream. Then again, who _wouldn't_ want that kind of work? Always going out and doing missions, getting paid to help people, ridding the world of evil… It's like the knights of old, and ever since I could remember, I've always wanted to be among their elite.

Looking back now, I guess I approached things a little immaturely. Well, I _was_ sixteen at the time, and I didn't know then what I know now, so I guess it can be excused. Anyway, where was I…? …Uh… oh, yeah, SeeD. Right. I was sixteen years old, and I asked my parents if I could FINALLY enroll in the local Garden. My folks were the type that wouldn't let me enroll in a major private school unless they "felt like I was really ready", but I could see through their excuses.

But when I turned sixteen, I finally earned their blessings for an enrollment, and with a suitcase full of belongings and a mind full of thoughts for the future, I set out for the nearest Garden my car could find (which was Balamb). Of course, I received a lot of tears as I left, but I took everything with a grain of salt. _It will all pass_, I continued to tell myself as I left my home behind me. _Just think of those two blessed words, "instantaneous nullification"._

The Garden was everything I thought it would be, and then some. It was very large, which meant it had lots of facilities and classrooms, and perhaps a hundred other things I didn't even know existed. There were many students already milling around (I assumed it was not a school day), and I allowed myself to look like a tourist as I stood there to gape at it all.

One student bumped into me and apologized, and I guess it would have been rude of me to stand there like an idiot and let everybody run into me. I found a bench to sit down on, then foolishly realized why I was even there in the first place. The enrollment!! I had forgotten all about it! I had never been so close to the Garden before, and I had never actually been _inside_ it, so my awe could be excused for now, but not my idle mind.

I had a schedule to keep, so to make up for my lost time, I more or less raced through the Garden. I made myself look like I was only speed-walking, but in a very subtle and unnoticeable way, I ran. The place was much bigger than I originally thought (just to really emphasize how huge it was), so I decided that it would be better for me to be tardy than lost, and I went over to the nearest directory.

The simple directory told me that the Headmaster's Office was just two floors above the main one. THAT was where I needed to go (to officially enroll), so I got inside the elevator and rode it up to floor number three. I hoped that future students such as myself had this sort of permission (to visit his office), but I just guessed that this sort of stuff happened a lot.

And now, I guess I can skip ahead a little. A lot of really dull things happen right at this point (oh boy, do I remember _those!_), so consider it best that I skip over this part. To roll things together nicely, the Headmaster and I had a chat, and he basically told me that if I had acceptable scores from my previous school (which I did), and if I passed a certain placement test (which I did), then I would be accepted as a student (which I was).

Isn't it fun sometimes to ignore details like this?

A student at Balamb Garden… Well, I really couldn't care _which_ Garden I was placed at, as long as I got a solid education and a worthy way to make a living (ahem, in other words, I would be a happy camper if I became a SeeD, so the actual location of the Garden was unimportant. I chose Balamb simply because it was so close, although today I thank God that I went there). Speaking of which…

I remember my very first day at Balamb Garden very well--_very_ well indeed. Even if you waited fifty years, I could have told you every detail about that day, from the scent of perfume worn by any women, or how tall some of the guys around me were, or the exact temperature of the air I breathed… I can remember it all, because… well… let's just say that something very _special_ happened to me on my first day.

At the time, it was not very special in the least. I was lost, no surprise there, and I didn't have the slightest idea where my class was. Needless to say, with all my wandering around, I eventually wound up being late. All bells rang and all students vanished from the halls, except for a few truants, and that left this romantic dreamer out alone with people who didn't care one bit about their education. ACK!!!

Not wanting to be affiliated with such people (I'd like to insult them, but they're insulting themselves more by skipping class. I now have the right to laugh at them as I attend my well-paying job, and they serve hot dogs in the atrium), I wedged a distance between myself and anyone else, and decided it would be better for me to be late to class than be caught as a truant. Of course, since I had no idea where my class _was_, this made things difficult.

My antics soon caught the attention of a select few members of the disciplinary committee--NOT something you want done on your first day. Like three cowboys high on power, they rounded me up like I was a longhorn steer, along with a few others who they also assumed were skipping class, and wrangled us down to the corral that was the detention room. There were only three cowboys--erm, disciplinary committee members, but believe me when I say that that was enough.

After being tossed in the slammer, I was soon being treated like I was just another young man who was playing hooky, just like everyone else. I couldn't blame the trio of wardens there, though. I guess if _I_ saw somebody outside after all bells had rang, then I'd want to rough them up a little, too. I may seem a little meek when I place myself in other people's shoes, but that's just the way I was brought up. Besides, at least they all treated us the same--badly, yes, but the same.

I was introduced to the members of the committee in the most distasteful manner. I was discovered outside by a pale woman roughly my own height, and was then dragged along through the halls of Garden (how embarrassing!!) to my detention cell to stew. She never said more than a few words to me, but I guess her looks alone were words enough. Her two companions, who I was not "introduced" to until later, also held a great haul for the detention room, so I guessed that they sort of worked together. I _knew_ they enjoyed their job.

"Pay attention, everyone," sneered the leader once all us stray longhorns had been rounded up. I DIDN'T. I just combed my fingers through my hair and hoped that this mistake would be fixed soon. I was NOT supposed to be here! Was it my fault that I was late? Hardly! I considered screaming out for justice, but you try yelling to a trio like that!

"…It's time for some fun," said the leader with a wicked grin. He leered at all of us, pounded his fist into his palm once, and advanced towards the nearest unlucky victim like a wolf stalking pigs. I never liked either species, personally, and I'm not one for beef, either……

"Tell me, _why_ did we drag _YOU_ into this room?" asked the leader in a nasty voice. He spoke to a frightened young man, though obviously older than I was. This poor fellow shivered, and muttered out a flimsy excuse. The leader (**FEAR SEIFER** had been written on the board before us, so I could only guess…) leered, and showed off every single tooth in his mouth in sadistic satisfaction.

"Pathetic," he sighed, "simply pathetic. We here at the disciplinary committee try and make our fair Garden free of little punks like you, but you never seem to learn, _do you?_"

"Yeah! We're never gonna be outta work at this rate, ya know!" smiled one of Seifer's lackeys. Seifer, the man who had been leering at the other young man, snorted in reply.

"You're ruining my style, Raijin," he said. **Raijin…** I memorized that name, too. Oh, Headmaster Cid would hear about this!!! **Seifer, Raijin…** But who was the lady that captured me? Or dare I ask? In any case, Seifer paced towards another person, a pretty young girl who looked even younger than me (they _did_ accept very young people in Garden). I felt compassion for her--not just because she was cute, but because she was a fellow human being. I wanted to help, but I guess she got what was coming to her…

Not like me, though. _I_ was innocent!! Or did new students like me not get any breaks? O Justice, where is thy hand?

"And what are _you_ in here for, missy?" sneered Seifer. The girl proudly stared back, not shrinking like the man had obviously hoped. Seifer saw her determination, snorted, and snapped his fingers. The one called Raijin smiled, and rubbed his hands together vigorously as he stepped towards her. I couldn't bear to watch the rest, but what I _heard_ was good enough.

"So, like, what're you in for?" he asked. The girl, probably scared of his bulk alone, tried not to quiver as she replied.

"…Uh… well, uh… ssmmmnkkngg…"

"Eh, what's that?" blurted Raijin, leaning forward and cupping his ear. The girl sighed and squeaked out her excuse.

"I was smoking."

"And?"

"It's against Garden rules to smoke indoors."

"Right," smiled Raijin, crossing his arms in victory. He grinned at Seifer, and slapped the man's shoulders. "Better to get flies with honey than vinegar, ya know?"

"Whatever," snorted the frightening leader. He shrugged, and carefully stomped over to _MY_ direction next. I got pretty scared of what sort of things they would do to me (despite my innocence), and literally began to pray. God had helped me up until this point in my life, so why should He abandon me now, when I _really_ needed Him?

"So," hissed Seifer as he leaned in, "I wonder what sort of nasty things this loser did to incur our wrath!" Despite my previous fear, I couldn't help but become angry at his words. One, I didn't do anything nasty. Two, I'm not a loser. My family probably makes more than his could, and success is hereditary (I hope so). Three, your wrath is obviously aimed at some other person out there, and I just got in the way. HELP ME, JUSTICE!! May your hand be swift!

"I'm not a loser," I muttered to his face. Seifer grinned, and stood straight again.

"Big man, huh?" he shrugged. "Well, I might have a few friends who'll crack that little shell. Hey, Fujin, did you catch this dork?"

"AFFIRMATIVE," replied the pale woman that had found me wandering around. So, her name was **Fujin**. Excellent! Now I had all three of them!! All I needed to do now was clear my name, get out of that room, and report these very zealous and overpaid goons to Headmaster Cid.

"Okay, so come on over and make him squeal!" beckoned Seifer. The only woman of the trio nodded her head, and took several slow steps towards the desk I was sitting at. She gazed down at me emptily with her single ruby eye, and snorted.

"CUTE," she pointed eerily. Fujin began cracking her knuckles, all the while staring down at me. "MAKE THINGS EASY OR ELSE," she threatened.

"I don't know what you're talking about, miss," I said. "I'm not supposed to be here at all."

"Typical," snorted Seifer. "That's what they all say."

"But I'm serious," I countered, keeping my voice reasonable. I didn't want things to become violent, verbal or otherwise. I continued with my alibi, and told them that I was a new student, and I had gotten lost. Of course, they didn't believe me at first, so to prove that I was telling the truth, I showed them my papers. In Garden, or in Balamb at least, new students are given a lot of papers that are designed to help them adjust to life as a student. They're also good for escaping detention, but they're only good once, so you have to use them wisely. I figured that this was a pretty good time.

"Well I'll be a naked marmoset," whispered Seifer, leafing through my papers. "He _is_ a new student! Hey, Fujin, y'hear that? You just caught somebody who didn't know their way around!!" Both Seifer and Raijin smiled, and started laughing like a bunch of buffoons, leaving Fujin to scowl darkly. I felt like I should have done or said something to make her feel better… but, I figured that that was the _last_ thing Fujin wanted.

"Oh, you kill me sometimes, Fuu," chuckled Seifer, ruffling the girl's silvery hair lovingly. She still kept her smoldering stare, and stayed still even as her companions laughed over the whole deal. I guess it was kind of funny, her catching me, but I certainly didn't get the joke. My tension was almost gone, though, and I guess I earned a tiny reputation that day for being "the kid who escaped Seifer's wrath".

"Hehehe… sorry, kid," smiled Seifer, giving my back a very rough pat. "You'll have to forgive Fujin here. She can be a little zealous sometimes; she just doesn't show it. No harm done though, right?" I sighed, and decided not to prolong things further. If I irritated them more, it would only cause more trouble.

"No, I don't think so," I replied gruffly. Seifer smiled and gave me another pat on the back, then barked an order to Fujin. He told her to escort me back to class, wherever that was, and apologize for the inconvenience. I didn't want her to be troubled, but Seifer insisted, and Fujin's pride was already damaged enough. I guess no matter what I decided to do, it would end up leading to trouble.

Fujin quietly led me through the long halls of Garden, and although her back was turned to me, I could tell she wasn't having a good time. I had basically done nothing but been in the wrong place at the wrong time--in other words, _her_ place on _her_ time. It wasn't my fault that I got lost, and I thank God that Seifer realized that. It was too bad that Fujin didn't see things that way.

Anyway, it was an ordeal for both of us to get where I was going. My instructor was Mr. Fenway, a guy who reminded me of my grandfather a lot. He was very old, and very wise, and very kind, and most importantly, he was very understanding. Me being the new student and all, I guess I was exempt from attendance for a little while, but I would have to promise that I would never do it again. Believe me, I wouldn't have wanted to.

Fujin saw me off as far as the door to Mr. Fenway's class. Her face was really dark and twisted, and though she showed no outward emotion, I could tell that inside, she was seething. The conscience inside me told me that I should one day bury the hatchet with her, and maybe we could be friends (no, I'm not crazy), but for now, I guess she needed to cool off. That was fine by me. I was busy enough on my own.

Thinking back on it now, I guess it was a strange way to meet somebody. But, that's how Fujin and I first found each other. It's silly, I know, but… that's the way it goes sometimes.


	2. How We Grew Together

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Chapter Two: How We Grew Together

My life as a student in Balamb Garden was mostly uneventful. I guess, in all honesty, I wasn't a "normal" student there. I didn't have any friends in the Garden (all my friends back in town went to a public school), and I didn't know anybody well, so I guess you could say I was kind of like a hermit. I never went to any parties during my stay, not that I would have been invited anyway, and I never really went "out". It wasn't like I didn't _want_ to be left out, I just… wasn't part of the "in" crowd.

They say that birds of a feather flock together, and Balamb is a menagerie for the feathered kind. First, we have the peacocks. You _know_ who I'm talking about when I say peacocks: the young men and women who must always wear the newest and/or trendiest clothes, or drive the most expensive cars, and have the best jobs, and so on and so forth. There are also the cuckoo birds, which is also self-explanatory. These birds seem to be the oddest of the group, whether they try to be different or not.

There are the birds that dress in black and walk around with Gloom written all over them (ravens), and there are birds who circle overhead just waiting for some poor dope to keel over (buzzards). There are birds in the band (OH, are there birds in the band!) and there are birds that play sports, and birds who flirt, and birds who receive flirts. There are some flightless birds around, who are quite different from everyone else but are still nice, then there are the annoying birds, and the tiny birds, and the gigantic birds. There are fast birds and slow birds, proud birds and humble birds, herbivorous birds and carnivorous birds, fat birds and skinny birds, and spiritual birds and atheistic birds, and……

Well, the list goes on. My point is this: if birds of a feather flock together, then "my" species has got to be extinct. _Has_ to be. I don't see any clique or group that I seem to fit into; no organization or club to be a part of; no gang of buddies, or a buddy of gangs, to hang around with… I'm basically a bird that has no flock, a bird of which is the last of his kind, and in a sense that's great, but most of the time it just plain sucks.

Sorry, I got off on another track. I know I seem quiet a lot of the time, but believe me, if there were people around to listen, I'd talk all day. I would surprise people by how much I have to say. Honestly! But, I guess nobody really has time for me, or even if they did, I guess they only care to stay around for a few seconds, ask how I'm doing, then leave immediately. I have to wonder… if they really wanted to know how I was, then why don't they stay around longer and find out?

Anyway, I'll stop talking now. I can see that I'm just boring everybody. I guess my droning comes from many years of being by myself, with a close but small cadre of friends who knew me a little better than most other people. But now I'm in Garden, and all by myself, and I suppose I'll get used to it in time. "NIDA FRANKS… who was he again? Wasn't he… You know, I can't recall him." Yeah, that's what they'll say.

The good news is, girls like a mysterious guy!

The bad news is, I'm completely harmless. Most "mysterious men" are either the rebellious type, or else they're dark and moody and "hurting on the inside", or else they're jerks. Hey, don't question my observations! I know this stuff! My mouth may not be working all the time, but my eyes and ears are! I _see_ things, and I _remember_ things, and maybe in the end, I just may have the last laugh when it comes time for our class reunion.

Oh God, I'm so pathetic… But at least _You_ understand me! (I tried hanging around the spiritual, or "religious" group, for a little while. They're mostly nice people, and pretty warm, but I was still overlooked and ignored. I guess I'm just too average for my own good. I guess I belong in that category, but… I'm more than just some guy who goes into his room and reads his scriptures! I'm also this, and this, and this, and…)

Never mind. You don't care. Anyway, all this is just a lot of stuff that's been on my mind. Because I don't go out often (I live in my dorm and my classroom, basically), I have lots of time to _think_ about things. I guess I'm smart in that way, but I don't know. If somebody told me that ignorance was bliss, then I might be tempted to believe them. Smart people, or wise people, just don't seem to have much fun. They're always thinking too much; it's the ignorant ones who don't think, and they seem to be all right.

It's so depressing. Oh well. I guess I can have some consolidation in the fact that, because of my education (and my thoughts), I'll have a good-paying job, and those ignorant people will be forced to serve hot dogs in the cafeteria. It's not much of a comfort, but I take what I can get.

Wow. Personal thought takes up more time and space than I could have imagined, but then again, I _do_ have a lot on my mind. Anyway, I guess I should get back to my story before my audience leaves me. Where was I…?

Oh yeah, I had just went through my first day of class in the Garden, and boy! Was it a trip! I was late, I was lost, I got caught by the disciplinary group, I sat through a good ten or so minutes of grilling from Seifer, I was dragged around by this creepy woman, I got weird stares from my classmates, I already have some hard homework… Whew!!!

The creepy woman… her name was Fujin. I didn't know her too well, but I couldn't help but feel a little bad for what I put her through the other day. Ha… it's been about… oh, two days since I last saw her, and I'm starting to feel guilty. It wasn't really my fault, after all--I was lost! I didn't know where I was going! The simplest map in the world wouldn't have helped me in that big Garden! It was just a case of mistaken identity. She thought I was a truant, and until I showed her friend my initiation papers, I was labeled as thus.

So the pride she must've felt from dragging me all the way down there had been shattered to pieces, and if there was anything left, it was long gone by the time she dragged me back up to my classroom. She had a right to be angry, as I had a right to be angry too, but I guess her anger outweighed my own. After all, what pride did I have, except in my accomplishments? But she… ah, she had pride by the barrel, and I had broken that barrel on a rock, without even meaning to.

The humiliation of catching an innocent person is a surefire way to kill one's pride, and to be given the task of escorting this person back to where they're supposed to be (like a mother guides a son she's irritated with) must've been a horrible blow for her. I had wanted to apologize, but I felt like I had done enough damage for the day (even though it really wasn't my fault).

So I waited a few days, just to make sure she had time to cool off.

Gentlemen, take notes. If a lady's mad in any way, give her time to cool off. That goes for you too, girls. If your man's angry, let him stew a little while before you talk. It's the smartest thing to do. Remember, better to confront a peaceful lion than an angry one.

So, two days passed for me, and I memorized where my class was so I wouldn't get lost again (not that I wanted to, after what happened to me). I was given homework, and I studied and finished it like a good student, and I got good but not perfect marks. I'm no genius, and I didn't expect to get valedictorian, but I never complained about my good grades, either. Anyway, I decided that I liked the class, and the school in general, though there were things wrong with both, just like any other school.

If I wanted to become SeeD, I had to select some kind of "major" to focus on. I'll never boast of being the world's greatest fighter, so I just decided to go for the brainy department. In other words, I chose the SeeD strategist department, and thusly got placed in one of the tougher (but ultimately, more rewarding) fields. My classmates were few but brilliant, and a few of them even went on to become instructors.

Now in this story I'm telling, my education really doesn't play a major role, but I thought I'd get a few things out in the open just in case. I was a student too, after all, and I had classes and homework and problems just like everyone--except I didn't belong in a group. I was just Nida Franks, student #178763, majoring in strategic maneuvers. Patience, patience… the _real_ story is soon to come.

One rainy day, I was on my lunch break from classes. I had an hour to get down to the cafeteria and find something to eat before the next class started, and with my luck, I'd probably be left with all the junk food. Classes are on the 2nd floor and the cafeteria is on the first, so if you add in the number of hungry students to that mix and do the math, you'll see why I was so pessimistic about my choices.

Anyway, while I was going to the cafeteria, who of all people should I run into but my "captor", the pale woman known as Fujin?! The hallways were not too congested, so I could see her easily, and I assume she could see me, so as we spotted each other, some obvious discomfort rose up (and it wasn't the roaring in my stomach). After all, I had broken her pride.

Her face never was that bright or cheerful, but when she spotted me, it instantly became dark. The dark-gray clouds outside suddenly seemed white as wool as her face contorted, and I could tell that she was in a bad mood. Any person who was not especially close to her would have been mauled if they so much as spoke to her, and I felt like I was signing my own death papers when I gave off my best smile and stopped her.

"…Uh… hi," I managed. Okay, so I'll never win any awards for public speaking, but come on… I'm practically a hermit here. I'm _not_ a big talker. "…Uh… well…"

"WHAT?" she barked, her powerful voice sending many younger students flying backwards a little. Lucky kids. They didn't have to confront her. I did. Pausing for just a few seconds so I could get the words out right, I stammered and tried summing up my feelings. This was harder than it sounds, believe me.

"…About the other day…" I began. She kept her dark look, lucky me. "Well… I, uh, just want to, uh, apologize for anything I did. I… didn't mean to, uh… make you feel uncomfortable or anything, but… Well, I guess I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time." She snorted, her lip curling like a tigress before the kill (Oh, the similarity!!), and crossed her arms. When she breathed, it was very loud and thoughtful, like every inhalation was a new concept. Her silence was the most disturbing.

"…So… I'm sorry," I repeated, extending my arm out. I would have had better luck painting a bull's-eye on my back and hoping to dodge a missile than to gain her acceptance. She didn't move at all, except to blink her single red eye and to breathe.

"…Can you forgive me?" I asked, even though I really didn't need it. I was ready to accept all the blame, and I would have done it, _if_ she gave me the chance. She didn't. She just kept still, glaring at me like Polyphemus must've glared at Ulysses. I swallowed, sighed, and grew a little braver.

"Listen," I said, "I don't want to cause any more trouble. I want to end this thing, right here and now. I'm willing to take the blame if you want me to, but I have to know if you forgive me or not. I'm trying to apologize here, and… you're not doing anything!" She snorted, and tilted her head in silent observation. I continued to look at her, to see if there was any sign of her forgiveness, or at least her understanding, but all she gave me was silence. I may be a quiet guy myself, but I'm not _rude_.

"Well, fine," I sighed, after giving it all the effort I had. "I tried to apologize, and this is what I get…" I continued to mumble to myself, and left her standing there as I continued to go towards the cafeteria. I didn't even bother to look back. What in the world was her problem?! I tried to do the honorable thing and patch things up, and all I got was the cold shoulder! Even if she had scorched me with her own bitter words, it would have been _something!_

Calm down, Nida. Just take some time to cool off. If she's going to be like that, then it's not worth the effort.

Well, I managed to snag a Reuben and some chips, and my obligatory glass of water, so I guess I was a little luckier than I thought. The cafeteria was a lot less crowded than I thought, so I found an empty table easily (the table would most likely remain empty throughout the lunch hour). I sat, prayed, and dug into my Reuben for a few good minutes, when suddenly I was joined by the very last person I expected: Fujin.

Like an executioner pacing before a victim of the guillotine, she slowly advanced towards my table with a small bag of popcorn in her hand. She came in from my behind, so I had no chance to prepare myself at all; it was all spontaneous, lucky me. So just like that, she snuck up on me and sat right across from me, sitting herself down and placing the bag on the table. I swallowed as her empty, horrid stare bore into my eyes, and wished I was anywhere but there.

And then, strangely enough, she began to munch on her popcorn. Slowly, one by one, she stuffed kernels into her mouth and continued to glare into my face. I felt about as sick as a kid in a roller-coaster as she kept her stare and her silence. I wanted to say something, anything, but all I could do was watch as she ate. Even her eating habits were painfully slow and deliberate, and pretty unnerving. Then, suddenly, she stuck out her hand.

"FUJIN," she said. I swallowed, and cursed the polite guy inside of me as I introduced myself.

"Nida," I said, and our hands touched for the first time in brittle understanding. Fujin slowly lost her icy stare as our hands shook, and her head tilted slightly. A slight glint of understanding was in her ruby eye, and she almost looked harmless.

"CONFUSING," she muttered softly. "WHY APOLOGIZE?"

"Hm?" My face became confused as I tried to understand what she was saying, and she grunted in slight irritation.

"EARLIER," she motioned with her hand, "YOU APOLOGIZE. WHY?"

"OH!" Okay, now I understood. "…Uh… well, you know… I kinda… felt bad for what I put you through." Her eye blinked once, and she gazed a little deeper.

"PUT ME THROUGH? MEANING?"

"Huh?"

"WHAT… DO YOU… MEAN?" she managed. Nowadays I know better than to ask Fujin to emphasize her words, but back then I was just a clueless young boy. Her fashion of speaking wasn't exactly her fault, but I didn't know that. I should have apologized even more after that, but…

"…I mean… what happened the other day," I said. "I know it really wasn't my fault, but… I guess I kinda broke your pride the other day. I mean, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and Seifer making you take me all the way back to my class--"

"CONFUSING!" emphasized Fujin, giving the air a poke with her hand. "WHY APOLOGIZE? FEEL SORRY?"

"…I broke your pride," I repeated, letting my head rest on my hand. "I felt really bad for what I put you through. Yeah, I guess I did feel sorry." Fujin slowly nodded her head, and leaned back in her chair to think. I couldn't read her expression, but from what little I knew about women, she was probably thinking about what I had told her. After a minute or two of silence between us, Fujin gained a small smile--almost too small enough to notice. She leaned forward again, and the smile increased by a fraction.

"STRANGE," she said.

"That I apologize?" I asked. Fujin nodded her head. "Why?"

"NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE."

"You mean nobody's ever apologized to you before?" She paused, thought, rolled her eye around. I found it slightly flattering that she spent so much time thinking, and not using her mouth like a normal girl would.

"…AFFIRMATIVE," she said slowly, "BUT… NOT LIKE THAT."

"What do you mean?"

"NOT YOUR FAULT," said Fujin in a soft voice. "MINE. MISTAKE. ASHAMED. NOT HINDRANCE." As much as I tried to keep up with what she was saying, I couldn't understand a word she said. I tried piecing it together, but I had little success. The end translation was that the fault was hers, and she was more ashamed of herself than angry at me, and that I was not a hindrance.

_She_ was apologizing to _me._

"…Are you offering an apology?" I asked. She slowly nodded her head, boring into me with that red-hot eye of hers.

"FORGIVE?" she asked, and pointed to herself. "FOOL."

"No, I should be apologizing. I completely wrecked your pride!" She smiled at me, she really smiled, and I found that look both haunting… and beautiful.

"NO, I APOLOGIZE!" she insisted.

"No, _I'm_ sorry!" I exclaimed. We both paused briefly, and broke out in smiles.

"APOLOGY ACCEPTED," she said.

"And I forgive _you,_" I said. We both smiled, shook hands, and I do believe our new relationship started at that point.

After that, the two of us spent most of our lunch talking, and we both found out the nice way that we had a lot in common. I knew, almost from the beginning, that Fujin was not a big talker, and even in the middle of a conversation, she really didn't have much to say. But what she did say was so simple and thoughtful and honest that I wondered why I hadn't noticed it before. Sure, she wasn't big on words, but when she did speak, she got her point across.

Of course, now that I actually had an audience, I let loose and blabbed about anything I could think of. All the while I spoke, about my past and why I was at Garden, she gazed back at me with her elbows on the table and her chin resting in her palms. I think she found it fascinating that somebody so average and "normal" had so much on his mind, and never once did she lose her smile.

"…I'm boring you, aren't I?" I asked in the middle of our talk. Fujin smiled, and shook her head no.

"LIKE LISTENING," she said. "NOT TALKER."

"Me neither, or at least, not usually." I gave her a weak smile, and she returned it, and I was liking her more and more. Something drew me to her, something I had never seen in any other girl before. Sure, she was different physically, and verbally, but there was something else behind all that, something _within_ that attracted me to her. But, let's not get ahead of ourselves now. I still have a lot of story to tell before I get into that.

"…You know," I said out of the blue, "I've always wanted to be known as somebody special. I don't think I'll ever pull it off, because who in their right mind would notice me, but… I still have dreams and goals just like everybody else."

"EXAMPLE?" asked Fujin. I was overjoyed that she actually cared enough to inquire. She wanted me to go on! Not too many people paid that much attention to me; maybe that's what drew me to her. She _cared._

"…Well," I began, "it's always been a dream of mine to be some kind of knight, like in days of old."

"KNIGHT?"

"Yeah… a knight. You know, saving the damsel in distress, fighting dragons, riding on horses, wearing shiny armor… that sort of thing. I figured that becoming a SeeD was my best chance at that, but even then, I ended up taking a strategic field." Fujin had been smiling up until the point where I mentioned my study major, then she tilted her head to the side in silent confusion.

"I'm not cut out to be a fighter," I said. I unrolled my sleeve a little, showing her my thin arms. "See? There's hardly any muscle there." Fujin blankly nodded her head, then suddenly leaned forward to touch my arm. Oh, that touch was so… _different_… I don't know how else to explain it. I had been touched by a girl before, several actually (mostly by accident), but this feeling was different somehow… Like, when a child who has been eating vegetables and liver all his life suddenly gets his first taste of fruit and milk. It was a cool touch, not chilling, and rough, but not coarse. I'm no good at explaining things…

"NOT IMPORTANT," she said, gazing at me with her single eye. She rolled up my sleeve, and crossed her arms as if to study me. "STRENGTH FADES. TEMPORARY. UNRELIABLE." She then pointed to her heart. "BUT THIS… ETERNAL. VITAL. UNDERSTAND?" Of course I did. I understood her so much that I smiled. My God… this frightening woman, pale and quiet as the moon, was a romantic on the inside, just like I was. I wondered, if she secretly pursued her own dreams of fame and glory, and honor, and knights…

I'd find out sooner or later.

"Yeah," I said, "I understand. Sorry. I'd just like to--"

"UNDERSTAND," she said softly, giving me an emotionless but soft look. Wow. She understood me. She knew exactly what I meant. Not too many people can boast that. Smiling, I tried to act cool and thank her, but my performance failed and I ended up looking silly. But, what I did do was honest, and sincere, albeit rather shaky and improvised.

Suddenly, Fujin and I were joined by two very familiar and very infamous faces, and both my eyes rolled a hundred-eighty degrees as Seifer and Raijin sat down next to us. They both smiled semi-wicked smiles as they joined Fujin, but grew somewhat surprised as they saw me.

"Hey," pointed Seifer, "I know you! Yeah! You're the kid who Fu caught by accident!" I didn't like the rough way he greeted me, nor the way he slapped my back. I didn't know whether he was friendly on the inside, or just plain weird, or what.

"My name is Nida," I said flatly, and he shrugged.

"All right, fine. Well, Fu, looks like you found a friend!" Fujin's eye was the only thing that moved on her body, and it only twitched for a second as it darted towards my direction.

"AFFIRMATIVE," she said. Seifer smiled, then drank some soda. I was sure that these two guys weren't just here to socialize, so in the most polite terms I could, I asked Fujin who they were. With a sigh, she pointed to both and gave me her usual brief explanation.

"SEIFER ALMASY," she pointed to the blonde, and he smiled proudly.

"Just call me 'Boss', kid," he saluted. I rolled my eyes in a vain effort to humor him.

"Your boyfriend?" I asked Fujin, and she suddenly drew back in disgust. Even I could decipher that, and Seifer… well…

"Hey!" he shouted. "I'm insulted! Fujin, how could you think so low of me?" Pouting still, he turned towards me and placed an unwelcome arm around my shoulder. "We _were_ once an item, kid, but not anymore. That was ages ago, right Raij?"

"Huh? Uh, yeah…" muttered the dark-skinned man of the group. He was looking away in another direction, and unless somebody called his name, he probably wouldn't be a part of the conversation. Seifer snorted.

"…Right," he mumbled. "Anyway, kid, Fu here's currently available if you're thinking of hooking up with her."

"SILENCE!" barked Fujin suddenly. Her kind face was long gone, and had been replaced by an angry one. I'm glad I wasn't the one who agitated her.

"Whaaaaaat??"

"EMBARRASSING," muttered Fujin darkly. Seifer's mouth became twisted with emotion, but he merely lifted his drink in a weak toast and shrugged everything off. Trying to pacify the situation, I decided to change the subject and asked who the other person was.

"RAIJIN," muttered Fujin, who looked like she was not in the best of moods. "BROTHER." Ahh, now I think I understood things!

"Yeah, we don't look like we're related, but we are, ya know?" smiled Raijin, giving Fujin's neck a hug. She growled and threw his arms off in annoyance, but he only smiled. Yeah, I think I understood how things went now…

"…So, are you guys like a posse or something?" I asked, trying to divert Fujin's anger elsewhere. Seifer mumbled something, and stroked his chin in thought.

"A posse, eh?" he said. "Hmmm… yeah, I guess you could say that. Yeah… we're sorta like a posse, the three of us. You know, kid, it may not look like it, but these two are really the only friends I have."

"Really?" I asked, now feeling concerned. Did I actually hear him right? Did he say that this mismatched group of his were the only friends he knew? Amazing! Just like me! Well, not really, but… ah, you know what I mean! Anyway, I guess the four of us were loners, except people feared Seifer and his crew, and not me…

"Yeah," he grumbled. "Nobody else seems to like us. Boo-hoo!!" Seifer was anything but sad, though. He was laughing, out loud, at a joke I guess only he understood. Fujin and Raijin smiled only to humor him, and so did I. I wanted to say how I, too, was a kind of unwanted person, and that I had few friends as well, and so on and so forth, but wouldn't you know it?! The lunch bell rang, right then and there!

The cafeteria was filled with groans as the students shuffled off to empty their waste, or to finish off their meals, and they would only have a few more minutes to make it to class. Seifer and his crew decided that they had better leave too, since not even they were exempt from the rules, and with several curt farewells, the two men left the table to go stalk truants. I found it amusing, in a dark way, that I could very well join their list of victims if I didn't hurry. I no longer had an excuse, after all.

"Looks like we'd better go too," I said to Fujin, who had kindly stayed behind. She silently nodded her head, her face once again expressionless, and stood to throw away her empty bag. Before leaving, she turned around and gave me a faint smile.

"GOOD TALK," she said. "ENJOYED. DO AGAIN?" I shrugged.

"Well… ahhh… I guess we can meet again tomorrow. Sure, I'd like that." Her smile increased very much, almost to the point of grinning, and she waved farewell before turning around.

"OH," she said before vanishing completely, "SHOULD HURRY. WILL BE LATE. DON'T WANT DETENTION." I smiled at her dry humor, and outwardly told her that I'd rather not reenact the events of my first day.

Secretly, though, I did want to be caught again. All that embarrassment might've been worth it to see her again. …Oh jeez, I'm turning into some kind of love-sick freak. Well… maybe not. Forget about it. At least we were on good terms now.


	3. How We Grew in Love

Author's note: Just as a personal tidbit, Nida's thoughts in the early part of Chapter Two are actually _my_ thoughts, which I converted into his. I was actually expressing my own feelings in that passage (about not having a "flock" to belong in, and not having people care about me), and I found that it was remarkably easy to pass them off as Nida's. Most of this story will probably be my own personal thoughts and feelings, converted into his, and will hopefully be written as simply and clearly as I am able. I can empathize with him completely.

Chapter Three: How We Grew in Love

I can't say how much time passed since our talk in the cafeteria. I'm not one who keeps good track of time, but if I were to make a guess, it'd have to be a month. Yes, that seems correct. Well, let us just say that a month has passed. It makes it a little easier to put everything in perspective. My name is Fujin Kazeno, and I have something to say.

I am one who knows the pain of being different from other people. In almost every sense of the word, I am not a usual person. Physically, there are few people in the world that look like me; socially, I'm practically a hermit; verbally, I'm threatening; emotionally, I'm curt; mentally, I'm too sharp for my own good; spiritually, I'm turbulent; perpetually, I am my Self.

I have been born with a slightly rare disorder called albinism, which was but one of many contributions for my isolation from the rest of the world. There are some cultures that say that fair skin is a sign of beauty, but I'm not living in any of them. I'm obviously not an outdoorsy-type person (I usually have to carry an umbrella around so I don't get skin cancer from the sun), and I'm not exactly the epitome of loveliness. Silvery hair and ruby eyes are far from normality here, and what pains me the most is that I cannot help it.

Sometime during puberty, I suffered from skin cancer in one of my eyes, and it had to be operated on to save the rest of me. I can no longer use this eye, and unless I am careful, I may very well go blind in both. To walk around with a terrible scar over one's eye socket would mean more pain and rejection than I could handle, so that's where the patch came in. In all honesty, I'm really just a normal girl who lives with (I refuse to say "suffers from") albinism. There's nothing special about me, really.

I had been ridiculed for my physical appearance all my life, or at least my childhood. Both my parents were dark-skinned (which is where Raijin comes in), and they tried raising me as best they could despite the difference of our skin pigmentation. I had thought that this world had civilized itself beyond the outer appearance of people, or at least their color; that shows how much I had to learn.

Since I was ridiculed so much, I decided to compensate for my "disadvantages" by shaping other parts of my Self. Of my body I trained into physical near-perfection, and of my shy voice I increased dramatically. I learned how to use the Razor Pinwheel, and I became exceptionally skilled with wind-related magic. I continually toned and exercised my body to the point of fanaticism, and I still do even to this day.

I'm getting somewhere with this, so don't ask if there's a point. I hate rude people.

One day, I was treated well. This… came as an unexpected surprise. Outside of the posse, nobody had given me much of a smile, or said kind words to me, or apologized for any wrongdoings. Nobody had shown me compassion, or love, or care, and they certainly didn't bother to seek my opinion on different matters. Then one day, this new student comes into the Garden, and already makes an impression on everybody by getting himself thrown in detention for a crime he was innocent of.

It was I who guided him into the "prison", and it was I who had to guide him back out. Because I had just "arrested" an innocent man, and subsequently had to take said man back to his room, the embarrassment and pain I felt was being multiplied by the hour. Can you imagine the suffering I went through, sitting in that room as people laughed at me? And can you imagine the guilt I felt as I guided this poor young man around? I wanted to punish myself for being so stupid and zealous, but could only scowl, mutter, and curse the whole way.

And wouldn't you believe it, but this poor young man thought it was all _his_ fault. He even apologized to me, and I guess I sunk pretty low when all I did was give him the cold shoulder. Here he was, being so noble that he was apologizing for a crime he did not commit, and all I could do was listen and stare at him. He stormed off after all efforts failed, understandably angry, and left me standing there in the hallway.

I had to make it up to him. As casually and as harmlessly as I knew how, I went and bought a light snack and joined him in the cafeteria, since it was lunchtime. I have almost no experience with friendliness, or even being with other people, so I guess my eating habits got on his nerves. He looked pretty scared, if you asked me, and I desperately wanted to kick myself. I had so much to learn--_stupid, stupid, stupid!!_

When we introduced ourselves, though, things started rolling along magnificently. We ended up apologizing to each other, and quickly disposed of all confusion and bitterness that would have festered on for eternity had it been left unchecked. I guess we became friends in that period of time, though our social call was interrupted by the posse and an all-too-efficient bell. I bade this young man farewell, and told him that I would like talking with him again. He said the same.

A month has passed since then. I apologize for droning on, but one would be surprised by how much is actually on my mind. I'm not a talker, and if I do speak, I probably do more harm than good. Only a few people can genuinely understand my brief rhetoric. But on pen and paper, I can say volumes, for here there is no one to judge me, no one to criticize me, and no one to recognize me. I can be… my Self. I can be Fujin here.

A month passed. That is the basic idea that I tried to convey. One month passed.

In the month that passed, the young man and I became, I guess you could say, Best Acquaintances. If there is such thing as Best Friends, then there should be such thing as Best Acquaintances. If this were so, then we fit into that description perfectly. We were borderline friends; it would only take a tiny push to move us into the next level. That said, we spent every single lunch hour together, sometimes by ourselves and other times with the posse. Nida and I (that was the young man's name) would talk endlessly on anything that crossed our minds, and sometimes, we didn't talk at all.

When you spend a whole month of lunchtimes sitting with a person and talking to them, you get to know them pretty well. I learned that Nida was very much like my friend Seifer: they were both hopeless romantics (not in the "love" sense--more like the "knights in shining armor" sense), and they each had a fantastic dream of one day becoming something great. Aside from physical appearance, their only real difference was that Nida was a thinker, and Seifer a fighter.

I say a month passed since our first conversation because we finally decided to be friends after a month. We had been talking on one uneventful day (not _exactly_ a month later, but you get the idea), and from out of nowhere, Nida asked if we could be friends. I had almost nobody with that title, other than Seifer (Raijin didn't count), and so I happily accepted. Then the _real_ surprise came.

"I, uh… I wanted to give you a gift," he muttered shyly. I smiled as best I could (remember, I've been an outcast for most of my life, so I rarely had a reason to smile), and asked him why.

"Well… I just wanted to give you something!" he said. That sounded fair enough. I'm not a stupid woman (usually); I know better than to ask for a man's reason to buy gifts. Some girls would think that there was something suspicious going on if a man bought them a gift for no reason, and oftentimes there is not. Those are one-sided relationships, in my opinion, where the man loves without reason and the woman questions without logic.

"WHAT?" I asked him. Nida paused briefly, and admitted to not knowing what I would like to receive. Unfortunately, almost every conceivable gift out there would have suggested more than friendship, but he was a smart man--he could figure his way out of a predicament like that. Nida told me that he had not bought me something--he had _brought_ me something, out of his own possessions. He was giving me something that belonged to _him._

"I thought you'd like a book," he said, and he was right. "And since I don't know what you like to read, I just pulled out my favorite. Here." Reaching into his book bag, he pulled out an old and worn-out copy of a novel I had heard about before, but never bothered to read. With gentle fingers, I took the copy from his hands, flipped through the pages, and breathed in the musty smell. The words Don Quixote were on the front and side.

"This book here is where I get all my crazy notions about love and chivalry," he said proudly. "The main character is this guy named Don Quixote, who thinks he's a knight. He goes on all kinds of crazy adventures with his squire Sancho, and almost always gets into trouble. It's pretty funny, in a satirical way." I smiled lightly as I looked at the book, and promised myself to read a little bit of it every day. With my smile growing a little, I thanked him for his heartfelt gift, and wished that I had something to give him as well.

_Wait--I did!!_

Quickly, before the bell could separate us, I shoved my hand into a small purse-like bag and pulled out another book, one that _I_ owned. I gave it to him, and let my smile be my explanation. Nida's eyes glowed as he beheld the title: L'Morte d'Artur.

"Fujin… this is… wow, this is too much…!" I smiled, glad to see my new friend happy, and wished him good day as the bell sounded. Nida asked me the same, and we both left with our "new" books in hand. Funny; we had both given the other a book on knights and chivalry and magic and heroes, somehow knowing that the other would like it. It doesn't seem that way at first, but like Seifer (which was where the book actually came from; he gave it to me for my most recent birthday), I was a sucker for adventurous romances.

That night, I couldn't sleep. I tried reading in my new book, and got as far as the tenth page before feeling drowsy, but the second I marked my spot and put it away, my eye flipped open. There was no way I could fall asleep, not even if I took a pill (which I never would), so I resolved to go out and build up a sweat. Midnight training activities had become a staple of my days; I had haunted the training ground so many times that I knew its design better than the architects that built it.

I was so restless that I decided to go for an all-out exercise program, and dressed accordingly. My usual attire of blue jacket-vest and black leggings would restrain myself in the intensity of my program, so I shed all these off and chose to walk to the training room in my underclothes only. I am definitely not one to flaunt my body, no matter how much Seifer says it's attractive, so even my undergarments were conservative.

I am but one of three people who are legally entitled to be out after curfew, the other two being Seifer and Raijin. Because we are part of the disciplinary committee, it is our duty to make sure there are no students outside after hours, so it was perfectly okay for me to be wandering the Garden at such a late hour. Headmaster Cid might've had something to say if he learned I was walking around in sports bra and boxers, though…

As I arrived at the training room, I inhaled the sharp, pungent scent of a jungle mixed in with the blood and bones of thousands of defeated monsters--and a few students. I had no trouble twisting my body through the mess of trees and shrubbery; though gnarled and twisted like a dense forest, I was so nimble and light that I could have snuck through it all without brushing up against anything. This was the idea all along.

I began to sprint as fast as I could, letting the soles of my bare feet just barely brush up against the grass and concrete. I was an incredible runner, and about as agile as an expert gymnast, so this barely counted as a warm-up. Next I leaped up to grab the branch of a tree, and swung on it like an ape as I moved across the canopy. I would perform these difficult moves first, then would probably move on to see if there were any creatures I could finish off.

I eventually spotted another person in there with me as I swung across the treetops. He had been working out a little himself, though it was clear he wasn't nearly as limber as I. He spotted me leap around the trees, and though I didn't recognize him at first, his voice and his wave were clues enough.

"Hey! Fujin, is that you?" It was Nida. I smiled smugly, then leaped down to his level so we could have a more civilized conversation (speaking with a scantily-clad woman hanging by the branch of a tree isn't my idea of cordiality). He blushed slightly as he tried not to look at my body, and I regarded his presence with a small snort.

"SHOULDN'T BE HERE," I warned him. "PAST CURFEW."

"Oh, don't worry about that," he assured me. "I have special permission. My instructor left to pick up some things he forgot, so I've been here by myself for awhile. I guess you decided to work out as well?" I slowly nodded my head, still unsure if his story was real or not. I had not known Nida long, but I knew for a fact that he was honest and sincere, so I guess I ended up believing him.

"Well, uh…" He stuttered and rubbed his neck, trying to get something out. "…Well… since you're here… would you, uh, like to join me for awhile? I mean, not like a date or anything!"

"DATE FINE," I assured him blankly. I really didn't mind, and from the look of his face, neither did he.

"Really? Well, great! Erm… uh…" He stammered again, and I tilted my head in confusion as I wondered what he wanted. Was he really that uncomfortable, seeing me wearing only the necessities?

"CLOTHES?" I asked, pointing to my lack thereof. He blushed again and smiled.

"Uh, I guess I don't mind… I mean, uh, well, I, uh…" I let out a smirk, crossed my arms, and nearly chuckled. Suddenly, I stepped forward and gave him a push, sending him tumbling to the ground in a dusty heap. After complaining about the minor pain, and dusting himself off, he wondered what had possessed me to do that.

"LET GUARD DOWN," I told him with that same smirk. "DANGEROUS. TRY AGAIN?" He paused to consider my words, then his face brightened as he realized what I had said.

"OH, oh, right! Right! Uhh, yeah, let's… uhh, try that again!" He smiled and stood in a defensive position, and I couldn't help but smile back. Darn it--I was starting to like him! _Ah, well…_ I sighed to myself._ If he keeps on treating me right, I just might go on another date with him! He's not unattractive, and he's really nice and sincere, and he sure knows how to treat someone that's so very much like himself…_

I lunged at him again, and this time he was prepared. He leaped off to the side, but my speed was considerable, and the second he landed, I swept at his feet and sent him tumbling again. _Well,_ I considered, _he's not quite as strong or as fast as I am, but then again, I've been keeping in shape for the past eight or so years._

"TOO SLOW," I said as I knelt down to help him up. Nida grumbled something and took my hand, but suddenly flipped me to the ground and pinned me to the floor before I even knew what happened! What the--?!

"You left your guard down," he said with a victorious smile. I snarled at him for a brief second--but the irony of the situation was too much for me, and I let out a hearty laugh. I can't remember the last time I really laughed, and I don't know if I _ever_ meant it, so this sound was strange to me. I continued to laugh at the situation, though, and he smiled down at me and began laughing too. His face turned pink as he suddenly realized that he still had me pinned to the floor, and with a gentlemanly apology, he released me from my bind. I noted with open amusement that he didn't bother to help me up. This man might have been weak, but he wasn't stupid.

We continued to spar for the next fifteen minutes. Nida was hardly a challenge in the physical department, but when it came to strategy, he could beat me every time. Nida was a man who learned from every mistake he made, and then would never make it again. It was true that he made lots of mistakes--after all, I'm a considerable fighter--but he learned from every one of them, and was prepared when I made the same move again. Darn it, he was good!

After twenty minutes had passed in all, both of us had worked up quite a sweat, though he was much more drenched than I. We had both learned something that day, and not just in the ways of fighting. Smiling warmly, Nida reached out to take my hand, and I gladly shook his. I didn't really know it at the time, but I had found a kindred spirit in that humid training room.

"Good workout!" said he, pumping my hand. "Though I never did figure out what happened to my instructor. Oh well, guess I'll figure it out tomorrow. Oh, speaking of which, I'd better get to bed soon. My first class starts at _seven in the morning!_ Yuck!!" He stuck out his tongue in disgust, and I chuckled again. Noticing my smile, he placed his hand on my bare shoulder and asked about it.

"You have a really great laugh, Fujin," he said. "You should really laugh more. I had a crummy day today, and until I heard you laughing that first time, I thought I was gonna be miserable for the rest of the week. But you've really made my day." My eye flew open in surprise, and my face became slightly colored as he expressed his feelings. _I made your day? My laugh alone brightened up your entire week? No! Nonsense! Rubbish!_

"TRUTH?" I asked. He smiled and nodded his head.

"Of course! I feel so much better! You really should laugh more, Fujin! This life's too cruel to stay in a bad mood forever. Go on, laugh! Give me your loudest, proudest, most powerful laugh! Come on!" My face became furiously flushed as he made his demands. I had no real reason to oblige, despite the fact that he was amusing me.

__

What's this I'm feeling? It's some kind of… fire inside of me. It's something I have not felt since……

And then, to my own surprise, I obeyed his request, and threw my head back in a mostly-faux laughter. I really let loose then, and probably made myself look like an absolute nut. But… I was also shocked at how powerful and _warm_ my laughter sounded. I really was not accustomed to a raucous outburst, but as I let loose, I found myself liking it more and more. Curses! What was this young man _doing_ to me?!

"…Wow," he whispered after I caught my breath. I had worked up more of a sweat from laughing than I did working out; I even amazed myself. "Fujin… that was… well, I don't wanna sound too overzealous, but that was magnificent! I was right! You have a terrific laughter!"

"EMBARRASSED," I muttered. "TOO LOUD."

"…Well, yes," he said meekly, "you were a little loud. But hey, that's all right. Sometimes, you gotta let yourself go." I faced him in all my sweaty and breathless glory, peering at him questionably.

"YOUR LAUGHTER?" I asked. He shrugged.

"I guess I'm just like you. I never really have laughed out loud like that before. It's a little late now, but I swear I'll give it a try tomorrow night. Hey, speaking of which, would you like to… uh… well, to… uh…"

"YES?" I wondered, raising an eyebrow. My wry smile had returned, and I was even slinking over towards him, like a cat. He stuttered some more, and twiddled his fingers before speaking. Poor guy.

"…Well… I was wondering… if, ahh… You'd… like to, uh… go… on, uhh… uhhh, a real date??" He paused, his face bashfully fixed to the floor, and I couldn't help but smile. Curse me, but I was starting to like him a lot more. But… I had reasons to. He was… everything I had been lacking up until now… Considerate, kind, honest, caring, sweet (well…), smart… Sure he was imperfect, but if I wanted to have a perfect friend, I'd be the loneliest person in the world. Besides, I had my own imperfections, and if Nida could accept me for what I was, then who was I to not do the same to him?!

"LOVE TO," I replied with a nod. His face lit up, and he smiled the most enormous smile I had ever seen, ever. It was a little too big, but I guess it was to even out my oversized laughter. Besides, I liked his smile for some reason. I guess, deep down inside, I like seeing people happy.

But don't you dare tell anyone else!!!

I awoke to the sound of somebody knocking on my door, and let a curse whisper out as I glared at the clock in my room. It read 6:42.

"FOOL," I muttered to myself. Groaning out in misery, I rubbed my eye and wondered what kind of nut would wake me up at such an ungodly hour. Suddenly, as my vision got better and the blurriness became clear, I inhaled sharply as it looked at my clock again. It read 6:42 _p.m.!_ I had been asleep _all day!!_

Groaning out even more, and not just over the fact that I had slept in my sweaty undergarments, I managed to put on a robe and open the door. I was not in the best of moods at the time.

"WHAT?" I grumbled to the offending knocker--and my disposition lightened slightly as I saw Nida standing before me. I offered him a mute apology for my rude behavior and he shrugged it off like the good friend he was.

"Fujin, where _were_ you today?!" he exclaimed. "I've been looking all over for you!" I let out an exasperated sigh as I remembered what time of day it had been when I finally woke up, and grumbled out--_wait a second! Did I just hear him right??_

"WHAT?" I asked him.

"I said I've been looking everywhere for you, Fujin!" he repeated. "I missed you today! You haven't been in _here_ all this time, have you??" I groaned again, letting a deep breath out as I considered what he said. Did he just say that he _missed_ me? That he had been looking for me all day?? That…! I…! Impossible! I…

"TRUTH?" I asked. "MISS ME?"

"Well, yeah," he said with a nod. "Me, Seifer, and Raijin couldn't find you!" I froze momentarily, one hand clutching the hem of my robe and the other gently covering my heart. Can it be true? Did somebody (besides the posse) actually _care_ whether I lived or not? Did somebody _worry_ over me? Did somebody--did Nida--really _miss_ me? This was… I couldn't… This was just too fantastic to believe!

"…APOLOGY," I managed, then conjured up a lie to excuse my absence. "FELT SICK. SLEPT ALL DAY." I expected him to be a little sympathetic, but what he did took me off guard completely.

"…Oh, I'm sorry. That's really bad. You didn't look sick last night. Must've been something a mosquito passed onto you. Well, you should probably go on down to Dr. K's and have it looked at, just in case."

Wow. Amazing. He cared. For the love of all things good and sacred, he cared about me. And I could not help the smile that came to my mouth.

"THANKS," I said.

"For what?"

"CARING." I broadened my smile, and he returned it with a little uncertainty.

"…Well, I'm concerned about you, Fujin. You're one of the few friends I actually have here, so I might as well treat you special. Oh, by the way, I completely forgot to tell you why I came over here in the first place!" He paused for the sake of suspense, and let me guess at what the news was. How he expected me to know was a mystery; I was still absorbed over what he had told me earlier.

"YES?"

"I passed the SeeD written test!" he exclaimed with zest. "I'm gonna be a candidate for SeeD! And who knows?! I just might be able to fulfill my dream after all!" I smiled at his enthusiasm, and for the first time in many years, I was tempted to hug somebody. I ignored this thought, but kept my smile to show him that I was not apathetic.

"WONDERFUL," I said. "SEIFER QUALIFIED TOO. WILL CHEER FOR YOU BOTH." He smiled, and I think it was at that point where we drew a little closer. I can't be certain. It seemed like such a long time ago.

"Thanks. I'm gonna need all the help I can get. Well, I'm gonna go study, then I'll hit the training room. I wanna be as prepared as possible before the exam, y'know?" I understood him perfectly well, and clasped his hand for good luck. He left with a smile and a wave, and told me to take care of myself.

__

Take care of yourself, Fujin!

The very second he was away, I let out a sigh. The depth of his caring for me was quite unfathomable, and I do believe that at that moment, I was starting to love him.

Oh, and you can quote me on that.


	4. How We Tested Our Faith

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Chapter Four: How We Tested Our Faith

I never did consider myself much of a powerful romantic. In fact, if it hadn't been for that coincidental meeting, I might have very well spent the rest of my life as a bachelor. Fate has a way of throwing a wrench in your plans, though, and I remember one event where an especially big wrench was tossed into the works. This wrench, this test of fate, was meant to either strengthen or dissolve our relationship forever. Up until now, Fujin and I had been on fairly good terms, but one event in particular would soon make or break our fledgling relationship. I remember it like it was yesterday.

Fujin and I were starting to grow close, but not in a terribly fast way. We were still friends, even though we had been on two official dates already, and the most we've ever done is shake hands. I've been brought up to believe that you should approach any relationship with another person slowly, and I was excelling at that. This way, I figured, we could've spontaneously called everything off and have no ill feelings at all.

Secretly, though, I wanted our weak bond to be pushed into a new level. Holding hands, hugging, maybe even a kiss or two, or even an intimate secret shared between us… Anything just to get the ball rolling. I… I was really starting to like her, and… well, I wanted to… ahh… well, you know…

So, one day, I decided to gamble on our relationship. I wanted to do something that would test her faith in me, or else mine in hers, but not something too big. I didn't want to rush things, after all; keeping things slow was okay by me. Anyway, during the last school day of the week, I went over to the same cafeteria table we had always met at, and waited for her to come (with or without the posse). Fujin came, all right, and she brought a smile with her. I adored her smile, and her laugh, and to see her in such a good mood really made me feel good, too.

(It's obvious we shared something, but like I said, I wanted to take things slow.)

"Hey," I said, greeting her. She kept her smile and sat across from me as always.

"GREETINGS. CONDITIONS?"

"I'm doing all right," I answered. By this time, I had gotten pretty good at interpreting her limited words, though I was still no expert. "What about you?" I asked.

"SAME," she shrugged, and without much else to talk about, she dug into her lunch and began eating. This was my chance. It was either now, or…… well, I'd have to wait out the whole weekend. I didn't know where she lived or even if she had a phone number, so if I had anything to say, now would have been the time to do it.

"…Hey, Fujin?" She swallowed her food and looked at me. Dear girl… most people would've kept on eating. She gave me her full attention. "…Uhh… I, uh, just heard about this really great park, and I was wondering if you'd like to spend some of the weekend there with me." Fujin thought about it (bless her for not blurting things out like most normal people), smiled, and nodded her head.

"OFFICIAL DATE?"

"Yeah, like a date," I said. "We can bring some food and have a picnic, and we can play around and talk, and just hang out, and do whatever. I heard it's going to be a beautiful night." She kept her smile, nodded once, and wiped her mouth of any crumbs.

"SOUNDS NICE. TIME?"

"Uhhh, how about five in the afternoon, tomorrow?"

"AGREED," said Fujin, and we shook hands on it. I then told her where the park would be, and then where she should meet me, and she had a pretty good idea where to look. She said that she had been there before, on business, and knew the place pretty well. So, now that we had a little understanding about our next date, we then went on to have our usual lunchtime idle chat.

I told her that I would be taking my SeeD field exam very soon--the following Monday, to be exact. Fujin wished me luck, and regretted the fact that she wouldn't be able to go with me. She had injured herself during training sessions one night, and so had to wait for the next SeeD test. I assured her that she would've blown everyone else out of the water had she went along, and next semester she should be even stronger.

Our conversation continued until the lunch bell rang, then we parted ways until the next day. Now, you might wonder why I said that setting up that date would be a test of our faith. Well, I guessed that if Fujin really was serious about our relationship, she would have taken the time out of her day to join me. Most of our dates were not quite as elaborate as this, and the park was a good distance away, so this might have been the defining moment in our relationship.

The rest of the school day went by as usual, with the Instructors wrapping up everything before the big SeeD exam on Monday. I had literally been preparing for this moment all of my life, so there was nothing they had to say that I hadn't memorized already. I was probably more prepared for the exam than some of the Instructors, but that's just my opinion.

The day passed into afternoon, and we were all let home to study or socialize as usual. We would all have two more days to be children, then come the next week we would have to shed off youthful antics and place the mantle of adulthood on our shoulders. I took this time to go home and plan my date with Fujin (I like the sound of that! _My_ date!), and then afternoon fell into evening, and evening into night, and night into morning.

I spent most of my Saturday catching up on anything I thought was lacking in my studies. I discovered I wasn't missing a thing; I had memorized everything I needed to know by heart. The rest of the day, I worked out until I became exhausted, then took a shower so I'd be in peak condition for my date. When my roommate asked why I was leaving in the middle of the afternoon with such nice clothes on, I plainly told him about my date.

"You're kidding, right?!" he spat. "_You_, with Fujin?"

"Yes!" I stated.

"Fujin Kazeno?!"

"Yes… Do you know any others?"

"_The_ Fujin Kazeno, the same one that hangs around Seifer and Raijin??"

"The one and only," I said with a shrug. His mouth fell open in shock.

"Franks, how in all of Hyne's green Earth did you manage to score a date with that creepy animal? And for that matter, why would you even _want_ to go out with that thing?" I suddenly turned around and glared at my roommate, placing as much anger as I possibly could in my voice.

"Listen, Howard!" I snapped. "Fujin is a wonderful, kindhearted, intelligent young lady! She's just as sensitive and humane as anyone else, and she's _not_ a thing! I know she looks different, and even acts different, but I don't mind! I think she's a beautiful woman, and if you have anything else to say, I suggest you make it an apology!!"

"Jeez, man," he said, backing away from me slowly, "sor-_ry!_ Okay, okay, I apologize, but don't come crying to me if she sucks all your blood out!"

"You take that back!!!" I shouted, jamming my finger in his face. Howard sniffed and apologized one more time, and I left before any one of us could be insulted again. Yes, I might have gone a little overboard, but if I didn't defend Fujin from those horrible rumors, then who would? We were friends, companions, and I liked her a lot, and I think when I defended her just then, it was a sign of my steadily-growing love.

I arrived at the park at 4:55. It was common courtesy to arrive anywhere early, and dates were no exception. The entire area was mostly grass and trees, but there were plenty of courts for eating or playing sports. A children's playground stood out in the very center, along with other wide open spaces that had been used by traveling carnivals and such. It was a very beautiful day, and not too warm, and absolutely perfect for a picnic.

Since Fujin was very sensitive to the sun, I decided to have our date held in one of the scattered shelters. I spotted one that was fairly obvious from the road, and walked over to sit and wait for my date. I figured that I wouldn't have to wait around that long--ten minutes at the most. Women can be excused from their tardiness because it takes them time to "get ready", and even though I knew for a fact that Fujin was not one of these types, I still gave her plenty of time to spare.

I had a watch with me, so I could tell how much time had passed. I had first arrived at the park at 4:55, and once I got myself settled, it was five on the dot. I didn't mind waiting for Fujin a little--after all, I had said to meet her at five, and though it was five now, I didn't expect her to arrive at that very time. So, to pass the time, I brought out the book she gave me and began to read.

Every ten pages or so, I would mark my place and check my watch. Five o'clock turned into 5:10, and then 5:20, and then 5:30. After I had been sitting there for half an hour, I began to grow a little concerned, but shrugged it off easily. After all, she could have been delayed by several delinquents, or Seifer and Raijin might've had one of their regular "meetings", and it had simply gone over. No problem.

Five forty-five… Five-fifty… Six o'clock… Six-fifteen… Six-thirty…

By the time I finished my book, it was seven o'clock, and Fujin was nowhere in sight. I began to grow a little angry at the delay, and wondered where she could be, and what the holdup was. Both Fujin and I knew where this date was going to be held, and we had both agreed on 5:00, and now two hours had passed with nothing to show for it except disappointment. _Where could that woman be?!_ I shouted inwardly. _What could have possibly delayed her? Did she get lost? Doesn't she know where this stupid park is?! What's the deal!!??_

I looked at my watch again, and angrily grumbled as I saw it read 7:02. I had been here too long. She wasn't going to show up! I had put my faith on the line and lost! I had trusted her to keep our promise and this is what I got! I was so mad that I could've broken something, and almost did. I finally decided that if she didn't show up by 7:30, then this whole thing would be called off. I can understand somebody being a little late, maybe thirty minutes at the most, but _two hours?!_ That was insane!

And so, I began to wait impatiently. Every second that passed, I grew a little angrier, and every minute yielded even more impatience. Come 7:26, I was steaming mad. How much time had I wasted out here, just sitting and waiting for somebody that would never come?! How much faith did I place on such an unreliable woman, anyway? Women! You never can trust them to do _anything!!!_

It was seven-thirty, and I daresay that at that moment, all the love I previously held for Fujin had now turned into hate. I was enraged over the fact that I had been foolish enough to sit out here waiting, while she had probably already forgotten about me! Just like everything else in life! I've been forgotten and overlooked everywhere I go, and no matter what I did, I always seemed to get second billing! I hated this!!!

Thank God I got my bearings straight before I left. Thank God…

Slowly, I calmed down. Thank God I calmed down… I took several deep breaths, cooled off, and made sure my fiery emotions were once again in check. And then, after I grew calm again, I began thinking with my head and not with my watch. How did I feel about Fujin? Did I love her or hate her? Was I really willing to put my faith in her on the line, or would I quit at the first sign of trouble? Would I stay on the path, even if it got too hard for me to bear, or would I leap off and be content with what I had?

If I stayed, I would be placing a lot on the line. My faith in Fujin would have to be stretched pretty far, but if I really and truly loved her, then I could have waited for all eternity. And then, it hit me. If I left, it would mean that I didn't care for her, and that all of this was just something that happened, and it didn't mean a thing. If I left, I would be taking the easy path--the path that led to nowhere. I would be… complacency.

But if I stayed and waited, and kept my faith in her… it meant that I really and truly did love her, and was willing to do anything to keep that love--even if it meant waiting out here in this park. Ah, now I understood. I knew what was going on. I really _had_ been given an opportunity to test my faith, and I came dreadfully close to bailing out at the first sign of trouble. No wonder I wasn't good with the ladies.

And so, when the clock struck 7:35, I decided to wait for her. I would have waited all night and into the morning if I had to, for I figured that, despite the cold that was quickly settling to the earth, Fujin would have been worth the wait. She was worth it, and more, so I decided to wait.

Seven-thirty turned to eight.

Eight turned to eight-thirty.

Eight-thirty turned to nine.

Nine turned to nine-thirty.

Nine-thirty turned to ten.

And I continued to wait patiently.

She would come. I had faith in her. Fujin would come. I just had to be patient.

It was growing darker and darker by the minute. I didn't bring a blanket, so when the sun vanished below the horizon, I was slowly growing colder. As the light of the world faded, so did its heat, and I began to shiver because of the deepening cold. But, I continued to wait inside that shelter… Even as the darkness swallowed the whole world, and the people in the park left for their homes… even as the moon came out, and wild animals started to roam the park, I continued to wait.

I tried passing the time by reading, but once the sun was gone, I had nothing else to do except walk around and try keeping myself warm. I had no protection from the elements except for my own clothes, so I had to shiver and shake a lot to keep myself warm. The hands on my watch kept moving slower and slower, while the world grew darker and darker, and the temperature grew colder and colder.

_Fujin will come. She said she would. Just keep believing that she'll come. And, if she doesn't… then… I'll still love her…_

When ten-thirty came and there was still no sign of Fujin, I finally realized that I loved her. Maybe not in the romantic way, but yes, I did love her. She might have been frightening and curt on the outside, and unusual in terms of looks and speech, but… I had seen something else behind all that. Behind the pale skin and the ruby eyes, she really was just an ordinary girl, one who had hopes and dreams and fears and regrets just like you or I.

I could understand her well. She was different in so many ways, and had had a hard life. She only had her brother and Seifer to look to for comfort, and no other friends. She was all alone, without a flock to call her own: birds of a feather flew together, but her flock was long extinct. She had desired none of the curses given to her, and only through the strength of her heart and will was she able to conquer it all.

The love I felt for her was not out of pity, but admiration. She had climbed above and beyond all the taunting and the laughter, and had made herself a force to fear. She was like a lamb that turned into a lion, and it was this strength that I loved, this… _will_ to ascend beyond what curses had been thrown at her. Fujin was a strong woman, both inside and out, and I knew right then that I loved her because of this, and more.

So it was worth waiting for her.

Ten o'clock became ten-thirty, which in turn became eleven o'clock, and still no Fujin.

That was no problem. I would have waited until five in the _morning_ for her.

A brief thought came to me during those dark hours…

__

What if she thought I meant 5:00 a.m.?

I had to admit, though ridiculous, it wasn't entirely possible. I had specified 5 p.m., and I think she would have known what I meant regardless, but still…

It was a pretty crazy thought.

I was nearly frozen stiff by the time eleven-thirty rolled around. Deep inside, I was growing impatient again, as I had been waiting for six and a half hours, but I kept on repeating to myself that it was worth the wait, and that Fujin would come, and all I had to do was be patient. I was chilled to the bone, and was too cold to move around much, and I was growing dreadfully hungry and sleepy, but I continued to wait, even as eleven-thirty passed me by to make room for midnight.

And then, just when the clock struck eleven forty-five, all my hours of waiting finally paid off as I saw Fujin off in the distance. I wanted to shout out to her, and I wanted to wrap my arms around her body in our first true embrace, but I was too cold to move. She saw me, though, and shouted out my name as she dashed towards me. When she came within touching distance, I mustered up all my energy to folding my arms around her, and I held Fujin close. The warmth of her body was… beautiful.

"Ffffu… Glad… made it…"

"NIDA… FEEL HORRIBLE…"

"Sssssokay," I shivered, my arms quivering as they held her. "Iiiiiiwazzz woorff thuuhh waaaait." Fujin shivered herself, though not from the cold, and slowly wrapped her own arms around my body. Feeling my frozen frame, she slowly shed her blue jacket and folded it over me so I wouldn't be so cold. It was so toasty and warm that it almost immediately defrosted me, and Fujin gave me a sad smile as she silently begged for forgiveness.

"NIDA… WAIT HERE THIS LONG?"

"Y-yeah," I managed, "I-I've b-been w-wait-ting ever s-s-since f-f-five…"

"FEEL TERRIBLE," she quivered, her face contorted in deep sadness. I smiled and held her close, and never once doubted her reliability. It _had_ been worth the wait. It _had_. All of this time waiting and all of this cold had finally paid off, and here I was with a beautiful young woman, with the strength of a lion and the heart of a lamb, and I couldn't have been happier.

"It's okay," I whispered, my voice having a little hiss in it because of the cold. "It was… worth the wait…" I smiled as I held her close, and she shivered a little. Her skin was slowly growing goosebumps from the cold, but the combined warmth of our bodies ensured us that we would have little to fear from the elements.

"KEPT YOU WAITING," whispered Fujin softly. "HORRIBLE PERSON. GLAD YOU REMAINED."

"It's all right," I assured her again. "Fujin, you're worth the wait…" She broke our embrace a little to gaze at me, and I elaborated. "Fujin, we've known each other for a little while now, but… I'm already starting to like you as more than just a friend… I wouldn't have stayed if I didn't care for you, and I do. I wanted to be with you today, so I waited all this time for you to show."

"STUPID," she squeaked hoarsely, and I could tell a tear or two tugged at her eye. "SHOULD HAVE LEFT. WILL FREEZE."

"It doesn't matter," I shrugged. "And I don't care what kept you, either. The point is that you made it, and my faith in you paid off, and… well, we can have that date." She chuckled weakly, and gazed into my brown eyes with a slight trace of love. I had never seen Fujin look at anybody with compassion before, except maybe Seifer, and I had to admit that her stare was incredibly sweet and full of love. I had been right about her all along.

"…By the way," I said, "what _did_ keep you? I don't mind that you're late, I'm just curious." Fujin's shy smile faded, and she grew sad again as her eye looked away from me. She let go of my cold body, and instead turned her gaze to the ground.

"INJURY," she said softly. "…HOSPITAL."

"…Oh, I'm sorry," I whispered. "If I had known, I wouldn't have scheduled a date!" Her sad face instantly grew a smile again, and the love in her red eye returned.

"ALSO TESTED FAITH," she said, pointing to herself. "HAD TO DECIDE, WHICH MORE IMPORTANT: NIDA, OR SELF? SELF, INJURED, BUT…… NIDA HURT WORSE, IF SELF ABSENT…" Her shy smile grew a little, as did mine, and I suddenly realized what she meant. My God… this woman had been in the hospital all that time, yet even with her injury, she managed to limp over here and keep her promise.

I nearly cried as I realized what she had went through. The injury had been in her lower leg, so every step she took was a painful one. Balamb Garden, or wherever she lived, was miles away from the park, and unless she drove, Fujin had probably walked all this way with an injury. Yet, even though she could have turned away as easily as I could've, she had asked herself which was more important--whether she really cared for me or not--and decided to go for broke, as I did.

The results paid off, for both of us, and I felt absolutely horrible for getting mad at her.

And then, I _did_ cry.

"Oh, Fujin… you shouldn't have done such a thing for me!"

"WORTH IT," she said with a smile, and she once again leaned forward to give me a hug. I held her back, and the cold of the night faded as we grew much closer together. After the embrace, I ended up looking directly into her face, and my eyes met hers, and we both leaned forward and placed our lips together in our first real, loving kiss.

That alone warmed me heart and soul, and yes indeed, it had been worth the pains we went through. My faith had been _rewarded._

When we broke the kiss, I gazed into her face, seeing the same shy, unsure, beautiful smile she usually had, and my hand went to her pale face. I didn't care what anyone else said: Fujin was a gorgeous woman, inside and out, and I loved her deeply. In fact, I even declared it just then.

"I love you, Fujin Kazeno," I whispered, and her single red eye flew open in surprise.

"NIDA…" I silenced her with another kiss, one she happily returned, and we held each other in the cold night as our bond became solidified. I may not have been experienced with romance, but I knew that I had a lot of love to give, if only there had been one patient and understanding enough to receive it. Apparently, I had found just such a person, in the most unlikely of places, and I couldn't have been happier if I wanted to.

"…LOVE YOU TOO," came Fujin's soft, husky voice as our kiss broke, and the glow on her face told me that we would be much more than friends after that day.


	5. How We Separated

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Chapter Five: How We Separated

As clichéd as it sounds, the SeeD ball was a night to remember. I think it was a pretty wise idea to let people who didn't make SeeD into the ballroom--otherwise, there only would have been three other people there! ……Besides me, that is! Yup, I made SeeD, just like I always wanted, and to my surprise, there were only three others who had passed with me: Squall Leonhart, Zell Dincht, and Selphie Tilmitt (I think). Sadly, Seifer didn't make it, but once I understood why, I could figure things out for myself.

The ball itself was wonderful, but my date was anything but happy. My presence always made her a little more cheerful than usual, but I don't think even _I_ could have persuaded her to smile. The poor dear tried, for my sake, but it was clear that she was of in another world--obviously in a quiet, hidden rage over Seifer's failure. More than anyone else in the Garden (except Raijin), she knew Seifer better than anyone, so I guess she did feel pretty down at the moment.

I did my best to cheer her up.

"Remember, Fujin," I told her, "there were dozens of other people who took that test, and not just from Balamb. I heard that there were Trabians in there as well, so don't feel too bad. You know how strict those tests were." Silence. Fujin leaned her head against my shoulder (despite the fact that we were almost the same height), and scowled quietly.

"IRRITATED," she muttered. I sighed, and tried my best to dance with my girlfriend. Fujin was just barely moving her feet, and although there was a sprightly waltz playing, we really didn't dance much ourselves. I think I may have even bumped into someone out of carelessness. But my lack of speed was all right--my girl was… well, she was irritated, of course, and I honestly couldn't blame her. Seifer might not have been the most loveable guy around, but I had to feel a little sorry for him.

"Is there any way I can cheer you up?" I asked.

"HOLD ME," she said, closing her eye and breathing softly on my neck. I loved that sensation. Most people would be startled to discover one of the feared members of the disciplinary committee be so gentle and soft, but I knew Fujin well, and I knew that behind that rough façade, there was a normal, average, everyday young lady in there, who was just like anyone else. Ha--we had so much in common!

Gladly accepting her request, I held my upset girlfriend softly, and slowly felt her troubles ease away as I rocked on the dance floor. I eventually took her over to a chair, sensing that both of us had danced enough, and kindly offered to get her a drink. She asked for something alcoholic, and I came back with two glasses of champagne.

"Cheers, I guess," I muttered, and I clinked my own glass with hers. Fujin sucked up all the drink like it was no more potent than water; I choked on it.

We left the ballroom earlier than normal. I claimed that Headmaster Cid would probably put me somewhere on assignment the next day and would thus need the sleep, and Fujin felt tired in general. I made the most out of our brittle situation and held her hand as we walked back to our individual dorms.

Our lives would definitely change after this day: I would be a SeeD (SeeD strategist, actually), and she would be inconsolable by all save myself, her brother, and her best friend. The cliché _"this is the first day of the rest of your life"_ came to mind as we walked back to our dorms, and though my sweet, beautiful girlfriend was still in a bad mood, I gave her a loving kiss goodnight and told her that all would be well in the morning.

For the next few weeks, I was one of Headmaster Cid's integral helpers. Along with the competent Xu Xiang (who I had a very minor crush on when I first arrived at Balamb), the two of us would perform all the dirty, behind-the-scenes work, such as filling out papers, running maintenance checks, debriefing other SeeDs, making calls about certain missions, negotiating, etc.

It wasn't the glamorous life I had intended, but hey! I wasn't going to be picky! I was a SeeD and that was that! So who cares if I never really got noticed!? Without Xu and I, this Garden might not function as well as it was right now! …Okay, that may be stretching things, but you have to admit that we were important.

Well anyway, it became clear that the relationship I had with Fujin was different now. I was almost always at work, or else too tired to do anything, and the poor dear was ever-busy in keeping the peace around Balamb. We would usually meet around the weekend, she with her disciplinary papers with her and me with my reports and statistics, and we'd smile and laugh at each other and have a good time.

But for the most part, we didn't run into each other a lot. That was okay--I trusted Fujin completely, and she trusted me, and the ordeal we had both went through proved that we were willing to be patient. After all, we were still quite young, and we would have the rest of our lives to be together. So, it wasn't like this time spent apart was tearing me up inside. Yeah, I missed being with her, and whenever we called each other we mostly expressed silence (because I just can't stand using the phone; it's so impersonal), but I loved her still.

Besides, absence makes the heart grow fonder! (Please don't groan.)

On one regular day, the life that I had once known and loved faded away in an explosive confusion. My studies showed me that NORG, the financial backbone of Balamb Garden and an evolved Shumi that I didn't care too much for, had gotten impatient with Headmaster Cid's debts, and decided to one day take over the whole place. Almost all of the Shumi faculty we had sided with NORG, and even some of the students and the SeeDs did too. My allegiance was with Cid, though, so I became the "enemy".

My first task was to inform Fujin and Raijin about what was going on. I knew little myself, so I pretended to be a NORG supporter until things cleared up. The entire Garden was one big mess--people were running everywhere, and I'm sure most of them were just acting like that to confuse everyone else. I myself made it past the faculty and found Fujin and Raijin glaring at a group of delinquents.

"Hey, there's a lotta chaos goin' on around here, so don't be gettin' any ideas, ya know?" said Raijin. The group of students hastily obeyed. I spotted them, and tried not to be too conspicuous as I ran over to them and called their names. Both of them looked happy to see me, although I'll admit that my girl looked a lot happier.

"NIDA! SAFE?" she asked. I had nearly keeled over from running so much.

"For the moment," I managed. "But this whole place has gone crazy! Do you guys know what's going on?"

"I wish we did, ya know?" shrugged Raijin. "We've been helping out wherever we could, but I'm so confused, I don't know where to turn to next."

"DANGEROUS!" emphasized Fujin, and I couldn't disagree if I wanted to.

"Definitely. Look, I'm gonna go defend the Infirmary, and you guys see if you can't help anywhere else!"

"EXAMPLE?"

"See if you can't cause more chaos. I know you both like Cid, so if you make a big mess, that'll stall them a little." Fujin and Raijin both looked at each other, nodded their heads, and let out a sinister grin.

"Hehehe… makin' messes is our business!" declared Raijin proudly. "Ha! We're professionals, ya know?"

"BE SAFE," advised Fujin, gazing into my brown eyes. I smiled and gave her a quick hug, and a friendly peck on the cheek; she forced her lips onto mine, and I gladly accepted the action (though this was not the time for passionate romance). I smiled in amazement after our little session, and she gave me an impish grin.

"LOVE YOU," she said gently. "GO SAVE WORLD, KNIGHT."

"Yeah, you too, Dulcinea!" I kissed her again for good luck, and gave Raijin a handshake, and waved farewell as we parted ways for the time being. I then made my way to the Infirmary, where I was stopped and interrogated by a few older SeeDs. I couldn't blame their suspicion--after all, I _had_ been claiming to be a NORG follower not ten minutes ago--so I identified myself and volunteered to help them protect the medical ward.

I fought pretty well considering that I had not been born a fighter, and I defended the Infirmary and the sick people inside with valor (haha). I was asked by Dr. Kadowaki to stay behind and help clean any messes up, but my concern was slowly being aimed towards Fujin. I hoped that she was okay, and that the Garden would quickly return to normal, and that everything would go back to the way it was. What happened here, anyway? Oh well, I guess I'll find out eventually. It wasn't my concern now.

----------

Raijin and I slipped out of the Garden before anybody could notice that we were gone. Our first destination was Fisherman's Horizon, yes, but we had other places to be. Seifer was out there, somewhere, living up to his romantic dream without a friend in the world at his side. Though he may be a little brash at times, neither my brother nor myself are people who just up and leave their friends at the slightest notion. I had more faith in Seifer than that. So, because we loved him enough to stand by his side always, this is what we did.

But I couldn't help turning my head and giving the Garden one last, forlorn look. I was leaving behind no friends there, nor were there any people who cared about me there. I would probably not be missed at all, except in the disciplinary committee, and they'd probably have a party when they discovered I was gone. But… I gazed at my pseudo-home for a reason.

I was leaving somebody I loved and trusted very much, and I did not know if I would ever return to him.

"Hey, Fu! Ya there?" Without a word, I returned my focus to the fishing town before me, shrugged, and continued walking. Raijin scratched his head and assumed that all was okay, and lumbered off after me as we left for the mainland. My heart was in deep pain because I was leaving Nida behind, and I feared the letter I left him would never quite express the sentiment that I could (not that I was much of a talker anyway). But… it had to be done. I didn't like long goodbyes, and although I knew my man would understand my leave of absence, I still hated the idea of leaving so suddenly.

But… my friend was facing the world alone, and I could not let that happen.

__

"Dear Nida,

"I was never good at expressing myself, even around you, and that is probably one of the main reasons why I so often came out as shy and uncertain. You alone, dear knight, know of my gentle secret, and I trust you to keep it for all of time. With that said, bear with me, and I'll try to let you know of what's happening to the best of my insufficient abilities.

"Put simply, my dear friend Seifer is out there in the world, all alone, fighting 'the good fight' I suppose. He is living his romantic dream, but I fear for his safety and his sanity. I know that not even he is strong enough to go through all this by himself, so Raijin and I agreed to accompany him in his journey. I do not know how long we will be gone, or even if we will ever return, but I just want you to know that I am not leaving because of you. I love you very much, my Nida, and I treasure every moment we spent together, even our very first.

"But Seifer is a friend of mine, and if I abandon my friends, then I could never live with myself. Please understand, Nida. I love you, but I love Seifer too, and I shall be at his side even in the valley of the shadow of death. I am not breaking up with you--perhaps this absence might even strengthen our relationship? I will still miss you terribly, and I fear I shall never smile again until I see your face, and I hear you speak to me, and I feel your hand in my own.

"I can't go on. I don't have the will to. I'll have to end this letter soon, so please, dear Nida, please take care of yourself, and take care of those you love. If I never see you again, keep me in your thoughts every day and try to move on. You are a good man, and you will find love easily if you keep looking. But I swear a blood-oath that I will do everything in my power to return to you, so until that time, I am and forever will be,

Faithfully yours and yours alone,

Fujin H. Kazeno"

PS--Try not to crash the Garden when you're piloting it. I love you.

--Fujin's letter that she left Nida before leaving the Garden--


	6. How We Suffered

__

Chapter Six: How We Suffered

The NORG madness lasted for a whole lot longer than I anticipated. I'm not too sure myself, but I think it ended somewhere around the time that the Garden accidentally crashed at Fisherman's Horizon… Oh, I'm sorry! Maybe I need to make a few updates in my story! It wouldn't make much sense to just say that right out!

Well, the first NORG insurrection was calmed through the efforts of myself, my friends, and all the other SeeDs who were loyal to Cid. We cleaned up the monsters that had been freed, and made sure that everyone else was safe. Of the SeeDs who pledged allegiance to NORG…… well, I don't know what happened to them, since I was with Xu at the time. We had both been assigned to helping the Headmaster prepare for "an emergency maneuver" as he called it, and were kept fairly busy for most of the day.

Our assignments were briefly interrupted when the Garden--get this--actually levitated off the ground and started _flying._ Yeah, I'm not making this up! It actually flew! The good news about that was that we could now avoid the missiles that were heading in our direction (don't ask, it's a long story); the bad news was that we were now very much uncontrollable. We almost flew straight into Balamb town!!! Thankfully, our Garden was somehow able to avoid this fate, and ended up in the sea instead, where we drifted for some time.

I never saw much of Fujin after the first NORG rebellion, so I just assumed that she was doing her part as much as I was doing mine. I had a lot of faith in her, and trusted her very much, so I could afford to not be worried. In any case, that was the least of my worries: we still had that mess to clean up, and a few butts had to be kicked, and oh yeah, what was the deal with those missiles? I was too confused to think straight.

Thankfully, during that time where we were drifting, Cid informed Xu, myself, and a few other key SeeDs about most of the problems that had befallen our beloved Garden. He told of NORG, and of the Sorceress any why Balamb was targeted, etc. etc., but by the end of his speech, I still didn't understand a lot of it. I'm really just a simple young man who doesn't like things to be complicated. Thankfully, Xu made everything simple for me.

The second NORG rebellion lasted much shorter, and there really were no messes to clean up except the refuse that had somehow collected in the basement. Cid plainly told us (Xu and myself) that there had indeed been another conflict with NORG, but he also added that that had been the last. Thank God! I wasn't suited to be running around like this!

Unfortunately, I was not given much time to breathe. Not five minutes has passed since everything calmed down for good, and we were already running into troubles. The Garden was now on a direct course for Fisherman's Horizon (as I mentioned before), but this time, nothing could stop the collision. To say that I felt sick, and helpless, and altogether scared, would have been an understatement. I had never felt so defenseless before in my entire life, and when the Garden collided………

………It seemed as if we were okay.

…Ha! Oh, thank God! We were okay! …Well, in reason. We had been hit really hard, and the town wasn't in the best of conditions either. Luckily, not too many people had gotten hurt, and nobody had died, and to my surprise, not a whole lot of people were angry with us! I mean, I know it was an accident, but I'm sure that somebody would've gotten enraged…

Anyway, my skills were put to the test when the FH constructors helped repair our Garden. They were smart enough to install a navigation system in the Garden, and wouldn't you know it? Out of all the people there, _I_ was chosen to be the pilot! ME!!! I nearly went ballistic! Of course, my own celebration was cut short when Squall was nominated as the commander (another long story, don't ask), but hey, I would have my moment later.

I spent about an hour getting used to the controls of the Garden, and it seemed that after we left FH, we never stopped moving. Our first destination was Trabia, which had been hit by the brunt of the missile attack I mentioned earlier. A few of our students had been transferred from that place, so I could understand why they were so distraught. I was bogged down with paperwork during the whole time, and if I ever got any time away from work, I was busy perfecting my driving skills. It wasn't easy learning how to fly that thing!

After we left Trabia, I was told to go to a peninsula in Centra, where it seemed as if a few of our elite numbers had grown up. I vaguely remembered Fujin saying that Seifer had grown up here too, but--

Suddenly, I jerked forward, and realized something that sent shivers down my spine. Fujin! I nearly forgot about her!! I slapped my head for my idiocy, and nearly left my post to search for her. I hadn't seen her since the NORG uprising, and that had been a few days ago. The messes there had been all cleaned up, and the people had all returned to their normal lives, yet never did I once see Fujin wandering around, nor even Raijin. What had happened??

Unfortunately, I had a job to do, so with my heart filled with worry and my brow tickled with sweat, I moved the Garden forward. My nervousness increased exponentially when we ran into Galbadia Garden, which seemed to learn how to fly in the time since we last left it. Along with its newfound powers, Galbadia had also gotten a very big mean streak--it attacked us, and there was a little war declared just then between the two Gardens.

As pilot, I had to put my thoughts on Fujin aside for the time being and concentrate on the mission before me. I followed any orders given to me, and drove that behemoth with the skill of an ace dogfighter. Oh, Fujin, if only you could've seen me then! You'd be so proud of me…!

In the thick of the fight, I had to put all my concentration in piloting the Garden, so I couldn't have left my post for any reason, not even to see if my girlfriend was all right. I was as nervous as a man could be, and I couldn't stop worrying about her even in the heat of battle. I hadn't seen her since the NORG revolt; where could she be? Was she okay? Was she hurt? Where was Raijin? Was he watching over her? Ack, I had too many questions!!!

Things never let down after that moment. As pilot of the Garden, I had been occupying myself with this one integral task, and I couldn't even leave my post to eat, so a few of my friends brought food up there for me. The breaks I got were short, and I usually just went to the bathroom or took a shower then. By the time it came for me to sleep (I went to bed every time it looked like we would be parked in a place for very long), I was too exhausted to search for Fujin--in fact, it was a miracle that I could make it to my room at all, I was so tired!

The battle with Galbadia ended with a mixed reaction. In a way we won, and in a way we lost, if that makes any sense. I wasn't filled in on many details, so I didn't know what was going on. From what I heard, it had something to do with the Headmaster's wife, and General Caraway's daughter, but other than that, I was left in the dark.

We jumped from here to there after that, mostly in hot pursuit of somebody I knew only as "Ellone". I found it rather strange that so much time was spent looking for this one person, when obviously we had other things to do. Could she be that important?

Oh, God… what am I_ saying?!?!?!?!?!?!_

Right in the middle of my own tirade, I suddenly realized why we were spending so much time looking for Ellone. Somebody, somewhere in this Garden, was looking for her. Well, that was obvious… I mean… somebody was _searching_ for her. They were worried about her, they had to make contact with her… She was important, she was… loved… She belonged to somebody, and was connected to somebody… I… I'm sorry, Ellone. You're just like my Fujin. I'm so worried about her, I'd go to the brink of the world to try and find you. You've been gone for so long… Where are you? Are you safe? Are you hurt?

I was given some off-time soon after we made another landing in FH. It seems as if Commander Squall was going to Esthar, in hopes of finding Ellone there, and he was taking Caraway's daughter and Cid's wife with him. Yes, yes… things were starting to make sense now… yes, yes… it was all coming together, I think.

Anyway, as soon as I got rested up, I went in search of Fujin. I literally ran everywhere inside that Garden, first by looking in the Headmaster's office, then I took the floors one by one. The second was very large and hard to search, but I was determined to find her no matter what. Every failure only increased my resolve to look further, and every empty place escalated my worries even more.

I feared that she was injured somewhere, and couldn't move--or worse, that she was dead. Raijin would've helped her in either situation, but he was missing as well, which _really_ worried me. Those two normally didn't get along, but I'm sure that they could've taken care of anything that went their way. So for both of them to be hurt, or dead, would have been a most terrible catastrophe.

I was finally relieved, a little, when I went to my own room. I didn't want to dismiss it as a possibility, so I had to check there too. When I got in there, however, I found a letter on my bed. It was from Fujin.

__

"Dear Nida,

"I was never good at expressing myself, even around you, and that is probably one of the main reasons why I so often came out as shy and uncertain. You alone, dear knight, know of my gentle secret, and I trust you to keep it for all of time. With that said, bear with me, and I'll try to let you know of what's happening to the best of my insufficient abilities.

"Put simply, my dear friend Seifer is out there in the world, all alone, fighting 'the good fight' I suppose. He is living his romantic dream, but I fear for his safety and his sanity. I know that not even he is strong enough to go through all this by himself, so Raijin and I agreed to accompany him in his journey. I do not know how long we will be gone, or even if we will ever return, but I just want you to know that I am not leaving because of you. I love you very much, my Nida, and I treasure every moment we spent together, even our very first.

"But Seifer is a friend of mine, and if I abandon my friends, then I could never live with myself. Please understand, Nida. I love you, but I love Seifer too, and I shall be at his side even in the valley of the shadow of death. I am not breaking up with you--perhaps this absence might even strengthen our relationship? I will still miss you terribly, and I fear I shall never smile again until I see your face, and I hear you speak to me, and I feel your hand in my own.

"I can't go on. I don't have the will to. I'll have to end this letter soon, so please, dear Nida, please take care of yourself, and take care of those you love. If I never see you again, keep me in your thoughts every day and try to move on. You are a good man, and you will find love easily if you keep looking. But I swear a blood-oath that I will do everything in my power to return to you, so until that time, I am and forever will be,

Faithfully yours and yours alone,

Fujin H. Kazeno"

PS--Try not to crash the Garden when you're piloting it. I love you.

As I read the letter, I went through every single human emotion ever felt, most notably love and sadness. The pure essence of Fujin's words was incredible, and they sent my spirits soaring as I read over them. She was not only alive, but well--in body, anyway, though it quickly became obvious that she was distraught over her decision. She was breaking her own heart by leaving me……

Breaking her own heart… Oh, she really did love me… (Not that I had doubts; I just like to affirm the fact every once in awhile) That last line also touched a chord in my funny bone--Fujin always did have a witty sense of humor--but I had to wonder what she meant. Did she know that I was the pilot? If so, then she could have left any time after we crashed at FH. That seemed to make the most sense--we were sailing abroad after we left that place, so that was probably the only way she could've left us. My worries turned into relief as I considered this, and I even fell on the bed with joy.

"She's okay," I smiled to myself. "She's really okay." I was happy enough that Fujin was all right, and to hear about her decision made me… well, it made me be at peace with myself. She was following her friend to the end of the world, and would probably go with him to the depths of Hell and back. Not many knew it, but Fujin was fiercely loyal to her friends, or to anyone else who saw past the outer shell she put up. She really was an incredible girl, and I counted myself lucky to be her loved one.

Time passed, though, and my happiness faded. I busied myself with piloting the Garden when I could, but I found myself being used in that position less and less. Commander Squall and his cohorts found a better mode of transportation, the famous spaceship Ragnarok, which left me with considerably less duties to perform. Paperwork slowed down, and although Xu and I became good friends in this time, it still didn't dismiss the fact that I was lonely and bored out of my mind. Not even Triple Triad soothed my restless nerves, and memories of Fujin came back to me…

I was placed as one of the staff in Garden, so I would forever have some thing to occupy my time with, but as I became skilled, the challenge dulled down and I found myself wanting more. Organizing SeeD missions and briefing younger cadets was fine for awhile, and I soon lost interest in participating in the actual battles (I had had my fill of those during the NORG revolt and the attack on Galbadia, thank you very much), but still…… There was a gaping hole in my heart, a empty void of loneliness and "out-of-touchness" that I used to experience all the time before I met… _her…_

I finished L'Morte d'Artur roughly around the time when Squall and his gang decided to face the most dreaded Sorceress of them all (I forgot her name). The book itself was wonderful, and it brought fond memories of dear Fujin. Even thinking about her made me lonely, and I had no idea how much I really and truly desired her presence until this moment. Was she still with Seifer? Was she happy, or safe? Did she miss me, like I missed her? I had asked Squall and the others to keep a lookout for her, and somebody would always make some kind of joke, and I'd usually just smile and wish them good luck.

But nobody told me anything about Fujin.

And so, time went on, and I could've sworn that for a brief moment, it stopped. Still no news from Fujin, not even a sighting from Squall and the others. I guess it's okay that they never found them… I mean, it was a big world, and she was just one person. Even combined with Raijin and Seifer, they would've been tough to spot out, though considering the Commander's knack for getting into a fight with his rival, I didn't doubt they met at least once.

__

Fujin… where are you…?

----------

__

I listen for your footsteps

Coming up the drive

Listen for your footsteps

But they don't arrive

Waiting for your knock dear

On my old front door

I don't hear it

Does it mean you don't love me anymore?

I hear the clock a-ticking

On the mantle shelf

See the hands a-moving

But I'm by myself

I wonder where you are tonight

And why I'm by myself

I don't see you

Does it mean you don't love me anymore?

Don't pass me by, don't make me cry, don't make me blue

Cause' you know darling, I love only you

You'll never know, it hurt me so

How I hate to see you go

Don't pass me by… don't make me cry!

I'm sorry that I doubted you

I was so unfair

You were in a car crash

And you lost your hair

You said that you would be late

About an hour or two

I said that's all right I'm waiting here

Just waiting to hear from you!

Don't pass me by, don't make me cry, don't make me blue

Cause' you know darling, I love only you

You'll never know, it hurt me so

How I hate to see you go

Don't pass me by… don't make me cry!

__

Don't pass me by, don't make me cry, don't make me blue

Cause' you know darling, I love only you

You'll never know, it hurt me so

How I hate to see you go

Don't pass me by… don't make me cry!

----------

"Hey, you all right, Fu?" My brother had his hand on my shoulder, and for the first time in awhile, he really showed no signs of smiling. That was okay--I really didn't feel like kicking him much, either. I was in too glum a mood to really get angry.

"PREFER SOLITUDE," I said, suggesting that he leave me be. Raijin nodded quietly, and backed away, leaving me to stand there all by myself. The sun was just setting on the horizon, and above me, the juggernaut of Lunatic Pandora hung in the air. My heart was more beaten and twisted now than it had ever been--and for so many different reasons.

I was obviously lonely and a little down for leaving Nida, but I had to do what I had to do. Seifer would be just as brokenhearted if we abandoned him, and though the decision was difficult, I still stood by it, even now. _Especially_ now. Yes, I missed him terribly, and I hoped that he was okay. Perhaps, though I can't be certain, he has already forgotten about me and moved on.

No. That's not the way he works. If that were true, then we never would've become as close as we had. If that were true, then Nida would've never been there at the park, waiting for me. He had so much faith and trust in me, who had been a perfect stranger… He had so much faith, that I had to wonder what I did to deserve it. I loved him very much, for many reasons, so I suppose I had to give him a little credit. I just had to trust him--I had to trust his faith, and I had to put my faith in his trust. Droll!

The sunset was beautiful, and since it was becoming dark, I didn't need to bring my parasol with me (I sometimes carry one around to protect my skin from the sun). I suppose I looked very beautiful just then, standing on the small hill and watching the orange ball of fire sink into the distance. I could just barely hear the crashing of waves, and right above me, the gentle whirring of Lunatic Pandora. In a way it was serene, and I wanted to enjoy the moment so much, but I couldn't.

I had to abandon my own friend. I had been by his side for so long on this journey… For so long… so, so very long… And, and I loved him deeply, and I would have done anything for him, literally anything… Except…

_We want the old Seifer back, ya know?_

I smiled. Raijin could be very wise if he wanted to. Though nothing could be simpler than his declaration, it expressed everything I was feeling at the moment, though I myself let my own voice go during that period. I had never spoken so much, nor with such a gentle and compassionate voice. I had once been like that, ages ago, and I thought that if I could show Seifer my true-self, the _real_ Fujin Kazeno (before the cruelty of life struck her down), then he would indeed become the old Seifer we knew and loved.

Well…… it failed… and we had to abandon him to his own degrading conditions. Seifer was mad, mad on power and greed and frustration and a sick, twisted determination to live out his romantic dream.

_It is not a dream, my friend,_ I whispered. _It is a nightmare!!_

And so, here I was on the hill, hugging myself in the cool dusk, watching the sun sink down, and right then I felt more horrible than I had ever been, even when everyone around me laughed at me, or ran away, or spread horrible rumors. I felt my lowest then, and so desperately wanted to give up… I was suffering in silence, though Raijin did want to make me feel better, and I don't think things could've gotten worse than they were now.

But oh, that sunset was beautiful!


	7. How We Found Each Other

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Chapter Seven: How We Found Each Other

From what I heard, the battle against "the" Sorceress went pretty well. Everyone that went in there came out alive and well, though I think Commander Squall has seen better days. Well, I guess that a battle won is a good thing, and I hope and pray that the final outcome is a peaceful one. In celebration of the defeat of "the" Sorceress, Headmaster Cid and everyone else threw a gigantic ball, and since I had been a part of everything, I was invited.

The ball itself was quite extravagant, what with people dancing and socializing everywhere. The mood was happy and festive, and I daresay romantic, but my mind was off in another world. I tried to look happy as friends and acquaintances milled around, but I don't think the greatest actor in the world could've fooled them for long--not if they had _my_ problems.

Yes, Irvine and Selphie were cutting up with the camera, Zell was making a fool out of himself as always, Quistis… well, erm, ah, it seemed as if she was enjoying herself… hehe… Uh, and Matron and the Headmaster seemed to be doing very well--_very_ well, especially given the circumstances. I didn't see much of Squall or Rinoa, but from what I heard while I walked around that ballroom, they were spending "quality time" together.

And yet, even in the midst of all this celebration, I couldn't help but allow my mind to wander back on Fujin. I had not seen her since the NORG revolts of so long ago, and to say that I missed her desperately would be pretty accurate. I was actually starting to hurt a little bit on the inside as I made my way around the ballroom, and although I tried my hardest to have a good time, there was nothing in that Garden that would elevate my spirits. As I moped, I ran into Selphie, who gave me a look and asked what was wrong.

"Oh! Hey, uh, Nida! Boy, you don't look so well! C'mon, lighten up! This is a PAH-TAY!!!!" She did an adorable little dance, but not even she could make me any happier.

"…I'm just lonely, I guess," I muttered, taking a sip of champagne. "My girlfriend's been away for such a long time now, and I'm really starting to grow concerned." I was pretty down in the dumps, but Selphie was anything but sympathetic. The sprightly little girl actually grinned and sang out as she stared at me.

"Oooooooooooooh, I didn't know that Nida had a sweetheart! So who is it? Huh, huh? Who is it? Huh, huh?"

"Forget about it," I mumbled, smartly avoiding her pokes and prods. "You don't care."

"Hey! Yes I do! Nida!" Selphie screamed out and ran off after me, but by that time, I had already decided that I preferred isolation over her company. If she couldn't treat my morose condition with the respect it deserved, then I was wasting my time with her.

"Nidaaaaaaaaaa!" she sang, pulling on my arm. "I'm really, really, _really_ sorry! I really am! I'm really sorry! Please! I'm really sorry!"

"Forget about it," I sighed, shaking my head. "It's not really your concern. Congratulations on defeating the Sorceress." And with that, I brushed the young lady off again, and ambled away until I was by myself. After disposing of my glass, I went outside to a balcony and leaned on the railing. My head slumped down in misery, and even though there was a party going on behind me, I couldn't find the spirits to be happy.

After a minute or two, I received another visitor. At first I thought it was Selphie coming back to apologize again, but instead it was Quistis, looking somber and sophisticated as ever. I paid her little heed as I stared back out at the dark landscape before me, and in this silence, she joined me.

"Aren't you having a good time?" she asked. I shook my head no. "Why not?"

"Because I'm a pathetic mess of a man who'll never get anywhere in life, and my only girlfriend has been missing for a long time now. Oh, and I forgot to mention that I'm sort of in a bad mood right now." Quistis, who probably didn't expect such an honest reply, merely pursed her lips and nodded her head. I sighed again, and decided to retire from the party early. I was definitely too sulky to have a good time, so it behooved me to leave the facility and find a nice quiet bed to sleep in.

I woke up early in the morning--so early that I believe even the Headmaster was asleep. I showered and dressed and made sure I was presentable, then I strolled down to the main lobby and checked myself out of the Garden. I wanted to leave, I wanted to get out--I wanted to do anything, anything I could, anything at all, except stay there and mope. I still wasn't in that good of a mood, so I guess a little early morning drive was just what I needed.

I thought a lot as I drove: I thought about my family back in the town, and I thought about how I had progressed ever since I left home. I had done so much growing up in these past few months, and yet I was still only about eighteen or so--still a young man. I didn't feel young at all, and I certainly didn't act that way either. I was in a terribly bad mood, definitely not willing to smile much, and the only thing I could do was drive on.

I also thought about my old dreams, the ones I had concerning SeeD. I was a SeeD _now_, so did that mean that my dreams were over? What would I do now, now that there was no longer a Sorceress to fight? Would I find a career and work for the rest of my life? Would I actually find another woman to be with? Well, as indeterminate as my future was, I could guarantee at least one thing: it was either Fujin, or bachelorhood. I don't think any other lady would've done the job for me.

Fujin…… Thoughts of my mysterious girlfriend dominated my mind as I drove down the road. We had started out so roughly, and yet, we were both willing to make the effort to get to know each other better, and to bury all hatchets, and to test our emotions. We had put our faith in each other on the line, and came out stronger because of it, but now even my faith was in question as I continued to worry about her. I knew I was deeply in love with her--after all, you don't worry about somebody you don't care for--and I also knew that I had to do whatever it took to get her back.

_Fujin… I hope you know how much I miss you…_

My early morning drive took me to Balamb Town, where most of the people there were just now getting out of bed. It was painfully early in the morning, probably 6:30, and there was so little activity in there that I could freely wander the streets in my car (which is a luxury you don't have too often in the crowded streets of Balamb). I parked myself near the dock, made sure the doors were locked, and without any cause at all, I began to wander around. I still had a lot of thinking to do.

The town I was in was a little small, but absolutely beautiful in the early hours. The sun was just barely peeking above the foggy horizon, and the sounds of crickets and gulls could just barely be heard over the lapping waters. The air was filled with a misty fog that gently filled the air with a shroud of mystical white. The breeze felt slightly chilly, and with the exception of a few stragglers, I was all by myself. I personally love taking early morning walks, if not for the beauty and silence alone.

As I made my way around town, I discovered that there was a little café that had opened its doors up recently. Feeling a slight stab of hunger hit my belly, I walked inside in hopes of finding something to eat. Darn it, I forgot to eat before I left Garden! Well, I prefer restaurant food a little over the cafeteria food (which isn't that bad), so I numbly walked inside the sleepy café and found a chair. When asked what I wanted to order, I chose my favorite, biscuits and gravy.

Suddenly, the man sitting next to me stared right at me, swallowed, and started up a conversation.

"Hey… don't I know you from somewhere?" I shrugged and turned around to see if I myself recognized him--and suddenly, my sleepiness vanished as my heart leaped up into my throat. There sitting next to me was none other than Seifer Almasy himself!

"Yeah…" he mused, "hey, yeah! I know you! Uh…… you're that kid that we found wandering around on his first day at Garden! …Uh… Nida, right?" I slowly nodded my head, feeling more surprise at seeing Seifer there than anything else I had seen in… well, probably my life. What kind of coincidences were at work here, that we should be meeting like this? As I pondered, Seifer craned over to his opposite side and shouted towards another customer.

"Hey, it's your boyfriend!" he yelled. "I found him!" My pulse went into overdrive as I heard him bellow, and as I turned to look in the direction he was shouting, my eyes immediately met the single crimson eye of the woman I had fallen in love with, and I swallowed as I saw Fujin for the first time in ages.

Believe me when I tell you that I didn't know what to do.

My own face was frozen in amazement as I looked at the pale woman, and I couldn't tell whether she was overjoyed or dumbstruck. I managed a small smile as I gazed at her beautiful face, and she smiled back in that same gentle way, and I think we would've been content to smile at each other if Raijin didn't intervene.

"Hey, Fu!" he said, slapping her on the back. "Are you gonna go say hi to him or what?" Fujin turned around briefly to smile and nod at her brother, then both our dams were shattered as we bolted out of our chairs and ran towards each other. With a beautiful crash, our arms locked around each other and our mouths met, and in that single second, all my negative feelings were washed away. As we embraced passionately, nearly everyone in the small café stood up and cheered at our reunion, and a song began to play on the radio.

__

Whenever sang my songs  
On the stage, on my own  
Whenever said my words  
Wishing they would be heard  
I saw you smiling at me  
Was it real, or just my fantasy?  
You'd always be there in the corner  
Of this tiny little bar.

  
My last night here for you  
Same old songs, just once more  
My last night here with you?  
Maybe yes, maybe no  
I kind of liked it your way  
How you shyly placed your eyes on me  
Oh, did you ever know  
That I had mine on you?   


  
Darling, so there you are  
With that look on your face  
As if you're never hurt  
As if you're never down  
Shall I be the one for you  
Who pinches you softly but sure?  
If frown is shown, then  
I will know that you are no dreamer.  


  
So let me come to you  
Close as I wanted to be  
Close enough for me  
To feel your heart beating fast  
_And stay there as I whisper  
How I loved your peaceful eyes on me  
Did you ever know  
That I had mine on you?   
_

  
Darling, so share with me  
Your love if you have enough  
Your tears if you're holding back  
Or pain if that's what it is  
How can I let you know  
I'm more than the dress and the voice  
Just reach me out, then  
You will know that you are not dreaming.

All throughout the beautiful melody, I held Fujin's face in my hands, smiling with unbound joy as I was reunited with my lost love. Neither one of us spoke much, but I believe that in that moment, we had no need for words. We were both content to simply stare at each other, and to smile, and on occasion we would kiss, and shed tears, and whisper to the other how much they were missed, and how much they were loved, and in the first time in a long while, I can genuinely say that I was happy.


	8. How We Persevered

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Chapter Eight: How We Persevered

As I gazed into the angelic face of Fujin Kazeno, all of my exhaustion, worries, and negative feelings swirled down the drain, and were replaced with the warm feeling that knows no other description except for LOVE. I smiled joyfully as I held my precious Fujin in my arms, and even though we didn't talk much, I think that words were unnecessary at this point. We were together at last, having survived the worst of what fate and life could throw at us, and so verbal contact was unneeded.

I also didn't care that we were receiving stares from several of the diners. We were both on our feet, holding each other softly, our foreheads touching and our mouths locked in smiles, and we both stood out like red on white paper. _But who cares?!?!_ This was the woman I loved, the woman that I was willing to put my faith and my trust on, _my_ girlfriend, and I honestly didn't care what anyone else had to say about it.

"Get a room," snorted Seifer, taking a sip at his coffee. Neither Fujin nor myself paid any attention; we just continued to embrace, our breaths tickling each other's necks slightly as we cherished the long-overdue reunion.

At long last, I really did sit down, but chose to go to a booth instead of a barstool, where I had been originally. That way, I could speak with Fujin in a more proper setting. Together we chose a booth that gave us decent privacy, and though I wasn't that hungry, I ordered breakfast anyway. After the server left, I began our reunion conversation with a very typical question.

"Where have you been all this time, Fujin?" She rolled her eye, sighed, and shook her head slowly.

"LONG STORY."

"I've got time," I shrugged. "They won't be needing me back at the Garden for some time. Besides, today's my day off. So come on! Tell me where the heck you've been!" She smiled that same mysterious smile of hers, shrugged, and took a deep breath.

"DIFFICULT TO EXPLAIN," she began. "JOURNEY… MANY PATHS. STRANGE SIGHTS." She paused for awhile, to think of her next words, and in that time our drinks came. Suddenly, the voice she had had before faded, and what came in its place was something so quiet and hoarse that I had to rub my ears a little just to make sure that I wasn't hearing things.

"I'm not so sure where to begin," she sighed in a gravelly voice. "It's been so crazy that I've barely had time to think about things."

"…Fujin…?" She smiled and gazed up at me, her single crimson eye glowing gently.

"Let's just say that it's been a long road for the three of us," she said. "…And to explain where I've been, let's just say… everywhere, okay?" I quietly swallowed a bit of my drink and nodded my head. Fine, okay. If Fujin wanted to keep that part of her life a secret (even from me), then I guess I had to respect it. It wasn't like it was vital information anyway; I was just curious.

"YOU?" she said suddenly in her "normal" voice. I paused in brief confusion, but decided to shove off my questions for the time being. I told her what had happened since she left (or as close to that point as I could guess): I told her about the NORG revolts, and how I flew the Garden (only crashing once, but that wasn't my fault), and then I told about Rinoa, and Commander Squall, and the hunt for Ellone, and the fight against Adel and Ultimecia, and…… Ugh, it was too much information.

To put things into perspective, we had already finished eating our meals by the time I was through with my story. Seifer and Raijin were antsy and impatient, and wanted to leave the restaurant as soon as possible. Fujin, as politely as a woman could, turned around and told them (more liked _barked_ at them) to wait. She then turned towards me and smiled sweetly--HA!!

__

I still may need time to get used to all this, I thought to myself.

"LEAVING," said Fujin, pointing to herself. She then pointed to me, and asked if I was coming with her. Hm, well, let's see. What should I say? Stay in a Garden where I'm bored and lonely, or go with a beautiful young lady that I love very much? Hang out in Balamb with nothing to do, or be near my girlfriend? Wander around, or walk by Fujin's side. Oh, the decisions!!!

Of course I was coming with her.

"Of course I'm coming with you!" I exclaimed, and she smiled simply as I joined them. However, Seifer and Raijin wanted to go out to the ocean and fish a little, and I still had things to do at the Garden (blech!!). Fujin was briefly caught between her posse and her boyfriend, and although it seemed as if she still wanted to spend time with Seifer, he urged her onto a different path.

"You go and be with your man, Fu," waved Seifer as we walked outside. "You've been spending way too much time with this group of losers, anyway."

"Hey!!"

"Sorry, Raij. I meant myself." He smiled blankly, leaving Raijin to scratch his head in confusion. Fujin also looked puzzled, but when Seifer nearly forced her to leave at gunblade point, she could only smile and shrug.

"INSIST?"

"Yes!" stated Seifer. "Now go on, get outta here! I don't wanna see you back for the rest of the day." Fujin grinned at her friend's rare display of kindness, bowed, and slowly slinked off to join me. I gave Seifer and Raijin a pasty smile and attempted to wave at them in thanks. _Uh, okay…_

"Interesting family you've got there," I muttered as I helped Fujin inside my car. She shrugged.

"NOT BAD PEOPLE. SIMILAR TO OTHER GUYS."

"…Yeah right," I blurted quietly, and Fujin tilted her head in search of an explanation to my words. I saved myself by saying that it was "nothing", and started the car before the silvery-haired woman could question me further. But Fujin was the kind of girl who let things drop, at least when asked, and in no-time at all she was laying back in the seat and letting the breeze from the window blast at her hair. The enraptured smile she had on was dreadfully contagious and had a powerful beauty behind it, and I couldn't help but love her more and more as we drove back to the Garden.

…Although maybe that wasn't the brightest idea I've had.

Taking Fujin back to the Garden was something quite unwise of me to do. I was mostly unaware of the situation, but it seemed as if Fujin, along with the rest of her posse, had earned quite a nasty reputation while they were away. From what I heard later, Seifer had been mostly responsible for steamrolling Ultimecia's progress, as well as Adel's, and his madness and hunger for power had carried him into insanity, which led to him very-nearly lighting the fuse that would incinerate the world into nothingness. So, yeah, not a whole lot of people thought well of him--not that they ever really did.

Fujin and Raijin were also now very unpopular, but luckily (for me and her), they were saints compared to Seifer. From the whispered rumors I would later hear, Fujin and Raijin had been responsible for Balamb Town's previous occupation, which nearly cost the city its existence. They were also in league with the whole Galbadian organization, as well as the events that happened around Lunatic Pandora, and some even claimed that they had been behind the bombing of Trabia (which was obviously untrue).

But I didn't know any of this, which was my disadvantage. I just thought that taking Fujin back to the Garden, even for a little while, would've been okay. Huh, shows what I know! No sooner had I parked my car and helped her out were we already being attacked. A small group of young students, about 15 years old on average, crowded around us and began assaulting us with whatever they could: their kicks, their hands, their words, even sticks and rocks.

"What're you doing here with her!!!!?" they demanded. "Get away! She's a monster!"

"INGRATES!!!" snarled Fujin, scaring a few of them away with her loud voice. But more of them came to attack us, and it was only by the strength of my backside were we able to escape their assault.

"Get that freak outta here!!" they shouted. "She's a demon! Nida, what're you doin' hangin' around a witch like that?! Yeah, she's no different from Adel or Ultimecia! Freak! She nearly caused the apocalypse!"

"Just ignore them!" I shouted, shielding Fujin's body as we made our way into the Garden. My girlfriend was understandably enraged, and I daresay that if I had not been there, a violent scene would've ensued and I'm almost certain somebody would've lost a limb. But thankfully, I was able to guide--or should I say, pull--Fujin away and into the Garden--which also was not a smart thing to do.

As soon as she emerged into the main lobby, a small crowd of people gasped in horror at what I had brought in. A disturbing thought ran through my head: what if a few of those people thought that I was bringing this "killer" in for arrest? I eliminated that idea quickly, and once again played bodyguard as I forced Fujin away from the squall. She snarled and cursed at the people, poor angel, and though I loved her dearly, I advised her to kindly shut up.

"You're not making things any better!" I hissed. "Fujin, if you fight back, then you'll only bring more excuses for them to attack you!"

"WHAT THEN?" she asked, demanding to know how else she should approach the situation. "LAY STILL, ABSORB DAMAGE, SMILE?! RIDICULOUS!!"

"Look, I don't know what's going on!" I said. "I have no idea why these people aren't treating you well! Maybe it really does have something to do with Seifer, but the point is that I don't know! Now come on! I need to get you somewhere safe!"

"SAFE WITH YOU!!" she growled, her face dark with anger. Her grip on my wrist was painfully tight, and I daresay that she looked mad enough to bite through steel--but I could also tell that most of her volcanic rage was not hatred at all, but love: pure, passionate, fiery love. What she had said proved it.

"NIDA, PROTECT!" she resumed, jabbing at the air with her finger. "NIDA, LIVE DREAM OF KNIGHT! LADY IN DANGER, PROTECT! SAFE WITH YOU, UNDERSTAND?!" I stared back at her, into that dark, volcanic face, and quietly looked at her with love. I was tempted to kneel down on the floor and beg for forgiveness, but instead I leaned forward and drew her into a hug--and from the feel of her body, she needed one desperately.

"…Don't worry, Dulcinea," I whispered to her. "Your knight shall always be here to safeguard you… And… that's why I wanna get you somewhere safe."

"SAFE WITH _YOU_," she said again, squeezing me as she hissed that last word. The meaning behind her actions wasn't lost to me; I understood what she meant, very well. I smiled again and gave her nose a kiss, and openly admitted that she was right.

"Yeah… if a Lady can't feel safe around her Knight, then she can't feel safe anywhere… Sorry, I'm such a numbskull."

"SMART, TO ADMIT IT," she said, tapping my nose with her finger. I grinned a little and kissed her again, and took her by the hand as we left for my room. We had been driving for some time now, and even though we had really just eaten breakfast, I do believe that our digestive systems were working overtime. I was now feeling hungry as a hog, and from the muted grumbling I heard from Fujin's stomach, she was too. Therefore, since we were both nearly emaciated with hunger (not really), I decided that it'd be best to take my work to the cafeteria.

And screw anyone who didn't like the fact that Fujin was back!

My inner bravado carried us all the way from my room to the cafeteria, where we were met with a sudden curtain of silence. Before I came in, I could plainly hear the usual lunchroom commotion bubbling up, but as I walked in with Fujin clasping my arm, the din became dead and the entire cafeteria became eerily quiet. I could actually hear my rubber-soled shoes walking on the ceramic tiles of the cafeteria, as well as the gentle hum from kitchen equipment. Even the children and the jocks and the gossipers were quiet; heck, even the _lunch ladies_ were quiet. It seemed as if all of creation became still as Fujin reentered the cafeteria.

I tried to act as casual as possible, and with my shoes quietly clapping against the floor, I took Fujin to the lunch line, which was conveniently (albeit suspiciously) short. In fact, there was nobody there at all, which would've been a real miracle in any other situation. Awkwardly, I went up to the lunch lady and ordered two full-course meals and drinks. She stared blankly at us for a few seconds, then slowly, turned her head and shouted to the workers behind her.

"……Two Number Threes and Two sodas!" Her voice carried to the very ends of the cafeteria, and as it bounced across the room, the conversations and the actions reluctantly started up again, and once again, the cafeteria was alive with activity--though I had to admit, everyone still acted like they were walking on glass, and poor Fujin looked disgusted enough to spew. I didn't dare ask her what the problem was; _that_ would've been a waste of breath.

"…What're you thinking, precious?" I asked her. Not even the most flattering name in the world would've relieved her of her foul mood.

"UNWANTED," she hissed gravelly. "SHOULDN'T STAY."

"Don't worry about it, precious," I assured her with a squeeze of her hand. "I'm here to protect you, remember?" Not even _that_ did much good, but at least her dark face lightened a little, though not by much. Fujin was forever glowering back at anyone that dared to lay their eyes on her, and although I'd normally attest their stares to her… abnormal appearance, today was different.

I suddenly felt the urge to whisper my love to her, and when I did, she gave me a sad smile.

"I KNOW," she whispered. "THANKS. TOO GOOD TO ME."

"Hey, you're a sweet and wonderful woman," I smiled. "You deserve it." Her smile grew a fraction, and just then our food came, and as carefully as we dared, we each snaked our way through the masses and found us a table. I wryly noted that Fujin seemed to inherit Moses' powers just then. Either that, or the river of people in our way parted under some other "unknown" circumstance. It was _almost_ funny.

Every single eye in the entire cafeteria followed us as we made our way to an empty table. I almost feared that there would be some idiots there that would deny us access, but thankfully Fujin's icy-hot eye dissuaded anyone from acting foolishly. Together we sat down, although there were still enough people staring at us, and even though the food was good, I couldn't help but dine in discomfort.

Okay, let me get a few things straight. Not a whole lot of people know me, and even though I'm a SeeD and the top Garden pilot and a master Triple Triad player (thank you very much!), I guess I still had a little bit of obscurity clinging onto me. Well, to be honest, there really isn't anything too special about me, except for what I mentioned, so I guess it's okay that not a whole lot of people noticed me.

But those that did recognize me must've been surprised out of their minds. They had known that Fujin and I were an item before, but I guess they assumed that I would end the relationship after the Sorceress War. After all, she was a "traitor", a "freak", a "monster", etc., and why I was still with her was a mystery. I guess it didn't make sense to any of them--plus, for those who didn't know me, seeing Fujin there in the Garden was almost sacrilege.

The hissed whispers that I overheard made even me enraged, and I couldn't dare imagine how Fujin felt. Just looking at her gave me a pretty good idea of how she was feeling, and I couldn't help but feel sad as I saw her angry face. Poor girl was enraged enough to melt rocks with her stare. Suddenly, as if we weren't suffering enough, I felt somebody tap me on the shoulder.

"Hey! What're you doin' with that traitorous witch?!" they hissed. "Don't you know that she helped out that crazy Seifer guy? And that she's also responsible for Galbadia attacking us!"

"For real!" hissed the person sitting next to them. "I heard she helped blow up Trabia! I had friends there, man!"

"You _know_ she's in cahoots with the witches!" snorted the first person. "I'll bet she'n Rinoa are conspiring to destroy us all! You're crazy, man!"

"Now wait a second!" I barked. "I don't know what's going on, but--"

"Obviously not!" they snorted, and that was the straw that broke this SeeD's back. I suddenly bolted out of my chair, and shouted out to everyone in the cafeteria.

"Now listen up everyone!!!!" I screamed. "I'm getting sick and tired with the way you're treating Fujin! The only thing you people can talk about is… is… is how she's evil and wicked and nasty, and… it's sickening that you can't worry about something else, like your own frickin' problems!

"Now I don't claim perfection, and I know that Fujin has made mistakes in her past, but if any of you has problems with her, then you can take them straight to me! Don't be whispering or muttering behind anyone's back! Come to me if you've got any problems!" With my spirits still hot, I turned towards Fujin and gave her a loving glare.

"…I love this woman!" I declared. "I, Nida Evan Franks, am in love with Fujin Hyuna Kazeno! I am in love with this wonderful woman! I have placed all of my faith and all of my trust in her! I have dedicated time and personal desires for her happiness, and I've suffered because of her recent departure! I know that I love Fujin from the bottom of my heart, and if you _morons_ can't accept that, then… then… _screw_ the whole lot of you!!!!!"

I took several breaths to regain my wind from the passionate speech, and with my face a little flustered, I demanded to know if there was anyone still brave enough to challenge my declaration. I scanned over the entire cafeteria, from front to back, and found nobody willing to step forward. After a good minute or two of looking around, I finally sat back down in my seat and grunted in irritation.

"I tell ya, sometimes I get so pissed off at other people…" My mutterings went unheard; as I looked up to see Fujin's reaction, my own foul mood was washed away as I gazed into her amazed face. There was more light and warmth and love radiating from that beautiful face than I thought possible, and the cold and curt woman whom everyone now feared was shedding silent tears of joy. Her mouth was beyond the point of smiling; it was heavenly, and the girl couldn't speak if she wanted to, at least for awhile.

"Nida…" She whispered my name, too happy to do anything else, and I took her hands into my own. I began to kiss her knuckles delicately, the same knuckles I knew that had beaten many a dangerous enemy, and smiled.

"I meant every word," I said as I kissed her. She grinned and blushed, and suddenly stood up with my mouth still attached to her hand. She pulled me up to her, and together we passionately locked lips in a public facility, and I honestly didn't care who was watching or who was aghast with horror. I loved this woman, and I wasn't embarrassed to let everyone know it. Okay, so it was a little showy, but who cares? The point was, we were together again, and we wouldn't let anything else separate us from that day forward.


	9. How We Handled Life

Author's notes: For those of you who are wondering, Dulcinea is the name of Don Quixote's "damsel" in the novel of the same name. I just thought that since Nida was a little Quixotic, then he should call Fujin by this pet name. On a more serious note, this is the last chapter, so for those of you who have been enjoying my NiFu so far, I thank ye! I have but one request for my fellow authors and readers: make **_more_** NiFus!!! So far, I think I'm the only author who's written a NiFu, so I want to see more!! Show me a good Nida/Fujin pairing! Oh, and if you liked this, check out "Mind and Body" and "Fenrir", two more of my stories that have a few unorthodox pairings. Enjoy what's left of the story!

Chapter Nine: How We Handled Life

What happened after that was a whirlwind of ups, downs, strange happenings, plenty of super-mushy romance (aww, who cares?!), a little bit of angst and depression, and more wacky adventures than you can shake a stick at! Okay, okay, so Fujin and I didn't do a whole lot of wild and crazy things once we got together, but that's mostly because neither one of us were suited for that kind of thing.

I _can_ say that I went into the Instructor business for a little while. I mostly taught future students about battle tactics, managing a behemoth Garden, and how to fly said beast. Most students were there so they could learn how to fly the thing, but I made it clear that there was more to my job than navigation. You can guess how many actually passed that class. Xu also occupied her time with something very similar, and I wryly noted that we were both getting ready to retire from our positions at a very young age (she was about four years my senior).

Things in the Garden settled down to a dull roar once all the fighting was over. I couldn't keep track of what happened to everybody, but I can say that more than one person lived happily ever after. People were either connecting romantically, or else moving on to another part of their life, or both. Edea and Cid reunited and began to build their lives up again, Squall and Rinoa bonded, Irvine and Selphie got close, blah blah blah. Like I said, I couldn't keep track of them all! I was too busy with Fujin--heh heh!!!

Seriously, though, that sparkplug of a girl took up a lot of my time, and I loved every second of it. I was perhaps one of the few people who really treasured and understood her, and though she insisted that I deserved somebody better, I would always counter by saying that she _was_ the better one. Now don't start vomiting, it's true! And doggone it, I _loved_ that woman, so I have a good excuse for being mushy!

Well, anyway, I was relieved of my services to the Garden when I turned twenty-one, so I decided to go into another line of work. Business, diplomacy, economics, the military, management… none of it seemed too unappetizing. Fujin, who had found a good job in a local hospital, persuaded me to take some kind of job in the economy, and this is where I ended up. Xu ended up working for the same company that I did, so we see each other a lot. She eventually got married, and last I heard, her first kid's on the way.

Speaking of which……… Fujin said "yes", if you know what I mean…!

And so here we are, four years into our marriage, with one little kid romping around and another on the way, I think. You wouldn't know it at first, but Fujin is really great with kids! She's got a warm heart, and she's unbelievably delicate to the young ones, and they aren't scared of her in the least. But who could be? My Fujin, my love, my _wife_ (oh how good that sounds!) is a beautiful angel, both inside and out, and I know that better than anyone!

We prospered over the years, both economically and romantically, and from time to time we see old friends from Balamb and even places beyond. I still can't boast about knowing what happened to Raijin or Seifer, or any of the people that went up against Ultimecia, but I'm sure I'll find out next year when the reunion rolls around. Oh, uh, we have a little "SeeD reunion" every five years, and of course I plan to attend! Fujin's adamant, of course, so we'll probably get into a minor argument about going. I'll probably win it, heh heh!!!

Okay, okay, enough fooling around. I really shouldn't be so mean to my poor Fujin, bless her heart. She really is wonderful, and so full of love. It's hard to imagine that at one point, I was actually scared of her! And now we're married with a kid! Mr. and Mrs. Franks! Who knew?! Well, I guess with that said, my story is pretty much wrapped up. Honestly! What else is there to say, except that Fujin and I are as much in love now as we were "back then"?

There's been a lot that's happened, and I can't say that our marriage wasn't perfect. There were times when Fujin would get mad at me for some reason, and she's shut herself away for days on end. And other times, I'd get fed up with her, and I'd say… "things"… that I didn't mean, and I'd have to shut myself away too. But of course we loved each other, even though at times we didn't see eye to eye… or is it eye to eyes? Whatever.

But for the most part, we're just two crazy lovebirds who will always be infatuated with each other! And screw anyone else who doesn't like it! Fujin is my Lady, and I her knight, and though no romance can ever be perfect, I'm happy just knowing that I can put all of my faith in this wonderful woman. Life has changed, and it's changed quite a bit, but from the end outcome of things, I can safely say that we've handled it pretty well.

Now if you'll excuse me, I do believe that I shall express my love to my wife in terms of physical affection--_if you know what I mean!_ Oh, now don't give me that look! We're married! It's perfectly legal!!!

Until we meet again!!!

**__**

The End


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